[ 

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the  Internet  Archive 

in  2014 

https://archive.org/details/historyofafricanOOpayn 


NOTICE. 


piNDING  it  impossible  to  carry  out  my  original 
intention  of  publishing  The  History  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  in  a  single  volume,  this  is  to  give 
notice  that  the  present  volume  will  be  considered  as 
Volume  I.,  or,  The  History  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  from  1816  to  1856. 

Volume  II.  is  now  in  course  of  preparation,  and 
will  be  issued  as  soon  "as  possible. 

D.  A.  P. 


\ 

4t 


On  -r&el  b/j  John  Sartdih  ,  T/ul: 


HISTORY 


OF  THE 


African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 


BY 

DANIEL  A.  PAYNE,  D.  D.,  LL.D., 

One  of  the  Bishops  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church;  Author  of  "The  Semi- Centenary  of  African 
Methodism;"  "A  Treatise  on  Domestic  Education  ;  "  "  Recollections  of  Seventy 
Years;"  General  Conference  Sermons.'" 


EDITED  BY  REV.  C.  S.  SMITH,  D.  D. 


TWO  PARTS.   IN  ONE  VOLUME. 


ILLUSTRATED. 


NASHVILLE,  TENN. : 
Publishing  House  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Sunday-School  Union. 
1891, 


ENTERED,  ACCORDING  TO  ACT  OF  CONGRESS,  IN  THE  YEAR  1891,  BY 

DANIEL  ALEXANDER  PAYNE, 
IN  THE  OFFICE  OF  THE  LIBRARIAN  OF  CONGRESS,  AT  WASHINGTON. 


PREFACE. 


^"piIE  General  Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
|  seeing  the  necessity  and  desirability  of  having  the  history  of  the 
rise  and  progress  of  the  Church  set  forth  clearly  and  concisely  for 
the  benefit  of  its  ministers  and  members,  authorized  Rev.  George  Ho- 
garth, the  General  Book  Steward  and  editor  of  the  Magazine  from  1840  to 
1848,  to  publish  a  work  entitled,  "The  Rise  and  Progress  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church, "  with  a  revision  of  the  life  and  death  of 
Bishop  Allen.  Mr.  Hogarth,  for  various  reasons,  never  accomplished  the 
work  which  had  been  thus  assigned  to  him.  He  had  frequently  called 
upon  the  ministers  of  the  Connection  to  furnish  him  with  the  documents, 
and  other  data  necessary  for  him  to  go  on  with  the  history,  but  owing  to 
the  general  apathy  on  the  subject  no  response  was  made  to  his  inquirits, 
and  at  the  date  of  his  death  nothing  had  been  done. 

In  the  General  Conference  of  1848  the  question  of  having  the  history 
written  was  again  brought  up,  and  by  a  numerous  vote  I  was  invested  with 
the  power  and  work  of  Historiographer  of  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church.  During  the  years  from  1848  to  1850,  following  the  example  of 
the  General  Book  Steward,  Mr,  Hogarth,  I  sent  to  the  various  ministers  and 
officers  of  the  Church,  asking  for  the  necessary  information  to  enable  me  to 
fulfill  the  duties  of  my  position,  but  always  met  with  the  same  result— no 
noti<    was  taken  of  my  request,  and  no  responses  were  made. 

in  while,  everything  I  came  across  having  the  nature  of  history  was 
'  -  put  away.    Finally,  I  perceived  that  unless  I  went  in 
history  would  never  be  written  by  me.  Therefore, 
Juinn  to  release  me  from  pastoral  work  in  order  that 
f  historical  documents  and  converse  with  the  con- 
temporaries oi  u      aj  Allen  and  his  coadjutors,  for  many  of  his  intimate 
friends  and  advisers  were  then  living.    But  the  Bishop  refused,  saying: 
will  give  yor  a  small  appointment  which  you  can  manage,  and  at  the 
time  go  on  in  search  of  what  you  need."    To  this  I  replied  :  "That 
iipossible."    But  the  good  Bishop  persisted,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
Baltimore  Conference  of  1850,  which  sat  in  Washington,  D.  C,  in  April,  he 
sent  me  out  as  pastor  of  the  Ebenezer  A.  M.  E.  Church,  of  Baltimore,  Md. 

The  announcement  was  made  on  Monday  or  Tuesday.  The  following 
Friday  morning  I  went  to  Baltimore,  and  in  the  evening  met  the  class- 
leaders  and  stewards,  of  whom  I  made  inquiries  concerning  the  condition 
of  the  charge;  but  to  not  one  of  my  questions  would  they  give  any  informa- 
tion. Therefore,  I  said :  "  Brethren,  why  do  you  not  answer  my  questions  ?  " 
The  chief  steward  replied  :  "  Dr.  Payne,  we  might  as  well  tell  you  at  once. 
The  people  met  here  last  Wednesday  and  passed  a  resolution  to  reject  you 

(iii) 


Preface. 


as  their  pastor."  Said  I,  "  Is  that  true  ?  "  "  Yes,"  he  replied,  "  it  is  true." 
Again  I  demanded,  "Is  that  true?"  He  said,  "Yes."  Then  I  rose,  took 
ray  hat  and  cane,  saying,  "Good-bye,  brethren;  I  shall  never  cross  your 
threshold  again  as  your  pastor.  But,"  said  I,  "  what  are  your  reasons  for 
refusing  to  have  me  as  your  pastor?"  He  said:  "The  people  say  they 
have  no  objection  to  your  moral  character.  They  believe  you  are  a  Chris- 
tian gentleman ;  but  they  say  you  have  too  fine  a  carpet  on  your  parlor 
floor,  and  you  won't  let  them  sing  the  cornfield  ditties,  and  if  anyone  of  them 
should  invite  you  to  dine  or  take  tea  with  him,  you  are  too  proud  to  do  it." 

But  the  Omniscient  Head  of  the  church  militant  and  triumphant  over- 
ruled this  rejection  of  his  servant  for  good,  as  the  sequel  shows : 

(a.)  Bishop  Quinn,  having  been  informed  of  the  fact  that  T  was  rejected, 
visited  Baltimore,  and  urged  me  to  take  possession  of  the  pastorate,  assur- 
ing me  that  the  civil  law  would  protect  and  defend  me  in  so  doing.  I 
replied  that  I  was  willing  to  go  wherever  the  people  were  willing  to  receive 
me,  but  my  own  sense  of  what  was  right  and  proper  would  not  allow  me  to 
force  myself  on  a  people  who  had  formally  rejected  me. 

(b.)  By  this  adverse  occurrence,  I  was  free  to  travel  in  search  of  material 
for  our  Church  history. 

My  searches  and  researches  commenced  at  Baltimore,  and  continued 
up  to  Portland,  Maine;  then  through  Ontario — called  at  the  time  "Canada 
West" — and  Pennsylvania,  Ohio  and  Kentucky  to  St.  Louis.  Thence  I 
proceeded  by  steamer  to  New  Orleans,  at  that  time  the  extreme  south- 
western point  of  our  field  of  labor.  Returning  from  New  Orleans,  I  passe  d 
through  Ohio,  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey,  and  arrived  at  New  York  in 
time  to  be  present  at  the  General  Conference  held  in  that  city  in  1852. 

As  Philadelphia  was  the  fountain  and  headquarters  of  African  Metho- 
dism, I  expected  to  obtain  the  most  information  in  that  city,  and  in  this  I 
was  not  disappointed.  Mrs.  Adams,  the  youngest  daughter  of  Bishop 
Allen,  had  in  her  possession  a  large  old  trunk  which  had  belonged  to  the 
Bishop.  To  this  I  obtained  access,  and  upon  examination  found  that  it 
contained  the  most  valuable  documents  extaut  which  could  shed  a  ray  of 
reliable  light  upon  the  early  history  and  character  of  the  illustrious  man. 

These  documents  are  the  manuscript  basis  of  what  is  called  "  The  Life, 
Experience  and  Gospel  Labors  of  the  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen."  There 
was  also  an  unbound  manuscript  entitled,  "Articles  Improving,  Amending 
and  Altering  Articles  of  Association  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  commonly  known  by  the  name  of  Bethel  Church,  of  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  in  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  by  and  with  the 
consent  of  two-thirds  of  the  male  members  of  said  church."  * 

*This  association  to  regulate  and  govern  the  mother  church  adopted 
seven  articles.  It  is  dated,  Philadelphia,  the  24th  of  March,  1817;  certified 
to  be  lawful  by  Joseph  McKean,  Esq.,  Attorney  General,  after  which  the 
Articles  of  Association  were  perused  and  examined  by  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  Commonwealth,  and  pronounced  lawful  by  Judges  Thomas  Tilman, 
Jasper  Yeats,  Thomas  Smith  and  H.  H.  Breckenridge  ;  and  then  ordered  to 
be  enrolled  by  the  Governor  of  the  State. 


» 


Preface. 


v 


The  former  document  contained  thirty-seven  pages,  and  w  as  written  by 
Bishop  Allen's  son,  Richard  Allen,  Jr.  The  proof  of  this  statement  is 
confirmed  by  the  minutes  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  for  1818-19,  which 
are  also  in  my  possession.  The  minutes  of  the8e  two  Conferences  were 
written  by  young  Richard,  then  about  fourteen  years  old,  The  manuscript 
of  the  Philadelphia  Conference  of  1818  is  also  in  my  possession.  It  was 
enveloped  hy  a  thin  pasteboard  cover,  which  is  so  colored  as  to  imitate  con- 
glomerate stone.  Being  too  small  for  the  manuscript,  this  cover  did  not 
give  that  perfect  protection  which  a  larger  covering  would  have  furnished. 
It  was  labelled  on  the  hack : 


I  also  ohtained  from  the  widow  of  Be  v.  Joseph  Cox  his  own  journal,  as 
closely  kept  as  that  of  Bishop  Allen — in  a  pasteboard  portfolio.  These 
were  the  only  two  personal  journals  of  the  "  Fathers  "  that  I  found  in  the 
city  of  Philadelphia.  Brother  Cox  was  a  local  elder  in  the  mother  church, 
and  in  mental  power  excelled  all  but  Joseph  M.  Corr,  who  was  "General 
Secretary"  for  the  three  Conferences— Philadelphia,  Baltimore  and  New 
York.  Joseph  M.  Corr  wras  also  a  local  preacher  and  class-leader,  and  a 
tailor  by  trade.  Although  he  kept  the  fullest  and  best  minutes  of  the 
three  Annual  Conferences,  he  kept  no  journal  of  his  daily  private  life. 
Beyond  these  two  journals  nothing  was  found  in  Philadelphia  concerning 
the  beginning  of  things — nothing  but  "tradition,"  and  that  was  contra- 
dictory. 

Elder  Clayton  Durham  and  Deacon  Walter  Proctor  were  associates  of 
Bishop  Allen.  Good  and  useful  men  were  they,  but  illiterate.  Bishop 
William  Paul  Quinn  was  also  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  (1850).  Added 
to  these,  I  found  a  stalwart  layman  named  Jonathan  Tudas,  from  whom 
I  obtained  an  interesting  account  of  the  convention- -not  the  General 
Conference,  because  at  that  time  (1816)  there  were  no  Conferences  in 
existence  to  be  represented  by  a  General  Conference.  There  were  only 
separate  and  independent  churches  from  Baltimore,  Md.,  Wilmington, 
Del.,  Attleborough,  Pa.,  and  Salem,  N.  J.,  which  met  in  Philadelphia, 
organized  a  convention,  and  in  that  convention  organized  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Jonathan  Tudas  was  present,  and  from  his 
lips  I  obtained  the  ''tradition"  which  is  given  the  reader  in  the  second 
chapter  of  this  history.  But  before  I  would  accept  his  narrative  as  correct, 
or  approaching  correctness,  I  interviewed  Clayton  Durham,  a  member  of 
the  convention  of  1816,  and  Bishop  Quinn,  who,  like  Jonathan  Tudas,  was 
present,  but  not  a  member — being  permitted  to  see  and  hear  all  that  was 
said  and  done.  Walter  Proctor  was  not  present,  but  he  had  obtained  from 
Allen  and  Durham  all  that  was  said  and  done.  To  these  three  persons  I 
put  the  following  question  : 


vi 


Preface. 


"  Can  I  depend  upon  any  statement  made  by  Jonathan  Tudas  respecting 
the  sayings  and  doings  of  the  convention  of  1S16?"  To  ibis  interrogation 
every  One  of  them  answered  in  the  affirmative,  and  assured  me  that  Tudas 
had  a  powerful  memory,  and  was  a  man  of  unquestionable  veracity. 

Leaving  Philadelphia,  I  traveled  throughout  the  whole  of  the  territories 
embraced  by  the  Connection,  including  Canada  West.  From  Washington, 
D.  C,  I  went  to  Portland,  Me.,  and  then  from  St.  Louis  to  New  Orleans 
and  as  far  West  as  Iowa  City,  in  search  of  historical  material. 

At  every  point  and  in  every  place  I  searched  as  diligently  as  I  did  at 
Philadelphia  and  Baltimore  (for  the  latler  city  was  as  much  a  fountain 
and  a  factor,  original  and  powerful,  as  the  former). 

Every  pamphlet,  every  Conference  minute,  Quarterly  and  Annual,  with 
every  scrap  of  paper  that  threw  a  ray  of  light  upon  the  genesis  and  pro- 
gress of  the  Connection  was  examined  and  copied,  and,  whenever  permit- 
ted, I  took  possession  of  it.  But  after  I  had  seen  and  gathered  all  available 
material,  I  perceived  and  recognized  the  fact  that  the  materials  provi- 
dentially saved  were  both  sparse  and  poor.  Nothing  reliable,  nothing  indis- 
putable had  been  obtained— nothing  but  the  minutes  of  Quarterly  and 
Annual  Conferences.  What,  then,  could  I  do?  Tax  the  imagination? 
Imagination  is  not  history.  It  is  the  source  of  romance.  Could  I  depend 
upon  tradition  ?  Because  it  is  contradictory,  it  is  therefore  unreliable.  At 
first  it  may  be  like  pure  water  flowing  from  a  pure  fountain,  but  in  its 
passage  through  ravines,  glens  and  valleys,  through  bogs,  quagmires  and 
swamps,  through  creeks  and  rivers  into  the  ocean,  it  becomes  stained, 
polluted,  muddy  and  filthy,  like  the  waters  of  the  great  Mississippi.  No, 
no,  no!  History  can  find  no  firm  foundation  in  tradition.  Neither  can  it 
in  rhetoric,  for  that  often  canonizes  falsehoods  and  lies  as  well  as  facts  and 
truths. 

Upon,  what,  then,  must  history  be  based  ?  Upon  unquestionable  official 
monuiyents  like  the  pyramids  of  Egypt — like  its  obelisks  and  its  Sphynxes, 
its  Karnac,  its  hieroglyphics — which  have  been  preserved  through  thirty 
centuries,  and  brought  down  to  us  the  histories  of  ancient  Egypt,  once 
mistress  of  the  world,  but  now,  alas!  alas!  "the  basest  of  the  kingdoms." 

We  say  that  history  must  also  be  based  upon  documents,  official  and 
irrefutable.  Such  are  the  minutes  of  our  Quarterly  and  Annual  Confer- 
ences. They  are  manuscript  and  printed  documents  of  the  genesis  and 
development  of  the  past.  The  sayings  and  doings  which  they  record  were 
recorded  because  they  were  sayings  and  doings :  the  facts  and  events  which 
they  chronicle  are  chronicled  because  they  actually  occurred,  and  were 
attested  by  those  who  were  eye  and  ear  witnesses  of  them. 

Official  documents,  whether  correct  and  accurate,  or  incorrect  and  inaccu- 
rate, we  cannot  go  beyond.  The  facts  which  they  record  are  recorded 
because  they  are  facts.  It  is  presumed  that  all  statements  were  examined 
and  sifted  before  they  were  accepted  and  put  on  record,  therefore  they  are 
reliabk.    If  such  monuments  of  the  past  are  not  to  be  credited,  what  is? 

Once  more,  the  correctness  and  accuracy  of  a  record  depends  much 
upon  the  competency  of  the  chronicler,  the  secretary,  or  upon  the  printer ; 


Preface, 


vii 


but  neither  accuracy  nor  inaccuracy  can  destroy  the  reality  of  the  facts 
neither  can  they  annul  the  events. 

1  am  now  prepared  to  inform  the  reader  t  hat  our  ftrsl  chapters  may  he 
called  Documentary  History,  because  they  are  based  upon  the  minutes  of 
the  several  Annual  Conferences.  Bo  it'  it  be  objected,  the  facl  that  the 
early  part  of  the  history  of  our  Church  being  based  upon  such  scanty  ma- 
terial must  be  taken  into  consideration.  To  such  objection  our  reply  is: 
We  cannot  make  that  rich  whose  nature  is  poor.  Should  we  make  the 
attempt,  it  would  be  fiction,  not  truth.  If  the  "Fathers"  have  given  us 
sparse  minutes,  we  cannot  make  them  full.  They  are  gone  to  their  eternal 
rest;  we  cannot  call  them  back.  They  have  left  for  us  the  records  of  their 
labors;  we  have  made  the  best  of  them — the  best  possible  to  us. 

If  Bishop  Allen,  Bishop  .Morris  Brown  and  Bishop  Quinn  had  kept  daily 
private  records  of  their  private  and  public  lives,  the  first  part  of  our  history 
would  have  been  ten-fold  more  interesting  than  it  is.  If  all  the  secretaries 
who  succeeded  Joseph  M.  Corr  had  detailed  the  transactions  of  the  Annual 
Conferences  which  were  in  existence  from  1816  to  1840,  when  the  Indiana 
Conference  was  organized  by  Bishop  Morris  Brown  at  Blue  River,  Indiana, 
our  history  would  have  been  fuller  and  more  instructive  than  it  is.  Up  to 
that  date  the  most  detailed  minutes  are  those  given  us  by  Joseph  M.  Corr 
and  Lewis  Woodson — the  former  of  Philadelphia,  the  latter  of  the  Ohio  Con- 
ference. For  beauty  of  penmanship  and  detailed  entries,  David  Ware  may 
be  ranked  with  them  ;  but  it  is  my  duty  to  say,  as  a  faithful  historian,  these 
three  secretaries  were  really  laymen,  i.  e.  local  preachers,  who  obtained 
their  living  by  secular  employments,  who,  by  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical 
laws,  are  ruled  out  of  the  ranks  of  the  clergy.  These  facts  indicate  the 
illiteracy  of  the  itinerant  ministry  up  to  1844. 

We  now  remark  that  the  first  parts  of  our  history  may  seem  stiff  and 
monotonous,  but  they  are  rocks— unchangeable  rocks.  The  Great  Teacher, 
who  is  also  the  greatest  factor  of  human  bistory,  tells  us  that  a  wise*man 
will  build  his  house  upon  a  rock.  But  the  latter  part  of  our  history  is  full 
of  life,  because  it  represents  the  living  times,  many  of  its  actors  being  now 
on  the  stage  still  performing  their  part  in  the  drama-  The  materials  of  our 
history  are  now  increasing,  and  becoming  rich  as  well  as  abundant.  They 
ought  to  be  carefully  preserved  for  the  future  historian. 

To  this  end  we  cannot  be  too  careful  in  electing  secretaries;  and  the 
Bishops  ought  to  conscientiously  keep  their  own  diaries  and  journals,  both 
private  and  official.  The  presiding  elders  should  be  required  to  do  the 
same,  and  no  one  should  be  a  presiding  elder  who  is  too  illiterate  to  reg- 
ister his  daily  work.  Then,  too,  if  the  pastors  will  write  monographs  of 
the  several  pastorates  which  they  serve,  including  men  and  women  noted 
for  their  piety,  usefulness  and  faithfulness,  we  shall  have  at  the  celebra- 
tion of  our  first  centennial,  which  will  occur  in  1916,  varied,  abundant  and 
most  valuable  materials,  wherewith  the  historiographer  of  that  day  shall 
be  enabled  to  furnish  to  posterity  an  instructive  history. 

And  now,  may  I  not  say  a  word  to  my  readers  as  to  the  nature  and  uses  . 
of  history? 


viii 


Preface. 


As  regards  its  nature,  one  has  said,  "  History  is  philosophy  teaching  by 
example."  Let  us  regard  this  definition  as  scientific.  As  a  Christian  edu- 
cator, I  shall 'say,  history  is  a  method  which  God  employs  to  teach  us  that 
righteousness  exalteth  the  individual  and  the  nation,  and  sin  is  a  curse  to 
the  individual  and  to  the  nation.  This  definition  can  be  demonstrated  by 
biography  as  well  as  by  monography  and  general  history.  We  say,  there- 
fore, that  the  Creator  of  man  teaches  him  by  the  course  of  history,  as  he 
does  by  no  other  method.  History  is  illustrative  and  confirmative  of  the 
teachings  of  revelations  and  the  utterances  of  prophecy. 

What  are  the  uses  of  history  ? 

(a.)  History  may  be  used  to  teach  man  the  truth— that  there  is  a  Supreme 
Being  above  him,  behind  him  and  before  him,  enlightening  him,  counsel- 
ing him,  and  controlling  him  by  limitations  of  time  and  power. 

(6.)  A  second  use  of  history  is  to  teach  that  the  Sifpreme  Being  is  not  a 
god;  but  the  Almighty  God,  the  All-Wise.  Good,  holy,  infinite  in  all  his 
attributes,  he  is  the  God  who  both  causes  and  permits  human  actions,  be 
they  intellectual  activities,  moral  sensibilities,  or  movements  of  the  will, 
causing  only  the  good,  and  permitting  the  bad. 

(c.)  A  third  use  of  history  is  to  teach  man  that  God  is  the  supreme, 
absolute,  irresistible  factor  of  history.  "This  is  the  purpose  that  is  pur- 
posed upon  the  whole  earth :  and  this  is  the  hand  that  is  stretched  out 
upon  all  the  nations.  For  the  Lord  of  hosts  hath  purposed,  and  who  shall 
disannul  it?  and  his  hand  is  stretched  out,  and  who  shall  turn  it  back?  " 
(Isaiah  xiv.  26,  27.) 

"  When  he  giveth  quietness;  who  then  can  make  trouble  ?  and  when  he 
hideth  his  face,  who  then  can  behold  him?  whether  it  be  done  against  a 
nation,  or  against  a  man  only."    (Job  xxxiv.  29.) 

Indeed,  all  the  prpphets  from  Moses  to  Malachi  teach  us  the  truth  that 
God  is  the  absolute  factor  of  history.  And  the  teachings  of  Jesus  and 
the  apostles  go  beyond  them,  as  revealing  the  Omnipotent  Hand  in  human 
history,  individual  and  universal. 

History,  both  sacred  and  secular,  reveals  another  startling,  I  may  say, 
appalling  truth — that  good  angels  and  good  men  are  co-operating  factors  with 
God,  on  the  one  side  ;  while  bad  men  and  bad  angels  are  co-operating  factors 
with  Satan,  on  the  other  side.    Behold  the  contending  factors  of  history  ! 

So,  also,  history  shows  that  God  deals  with  his  Church  as  he  deals  with 
the  state.  Both  prosper  and  perpetuate  their  existence  as  they  observe, 
reverence  and  keep  his  commandments,  his  statutes  and  his  judgments — 
both  fall  under  his  indignation  and  are  destroyed  as  they  disobey  him  and 
contemn  his  commandments,  his  statutes  and  his  laws.  Sacred  history 
abounds  with  examples  illustrating  and  confirming  these  statements  we 
have  just  made. 

Lastly,  both  sacred  and  secular,  sometimes  called  profane  history,  show 
that  Churches,  as  well  as  states,  monarchies  and  empires,  are  limited  by 
divine  power;  that  when  their  time  expires  no  human  or  divine  agency 
can  prolong  their  existence,  and  that  the  invisible  power  brings  them  to  a 
final  end. 


Preface. 


ix 


The  antediluvian  Church  seems  to  have  had  no  organic  form,  hut  we  see 
stars  of  the  first  magnitude  shining  in  its  firmament- stars  such  as  Ahel 
and  Seth,  Enoch  and  Noah.  This  inorganic  four  was  useful  for  the  ante- 
diluvian age.    When  that  age  expired  it  passed  away  forever. 

Out  of  the  flood  and  the  ark,  which  sailed  upon  its  bosom,  came  Noah 
and  his  sons  as  new  seed  for  a  new  state  and  a  new  Church.  From  the 
three  rescued  brothers,  the;  eldest,  Shem,  was  chosen,  and  of  his  immedi- 
ate descendants  Abraham  was  selected  as  the  root  of  that  divine  tree  which 
God  the  Father  ordained  to  become  the  Tree  whose  juices  and  leaves  and 
fruit  are  for  the  healing  of  nations.  It  assumed  two  successive  outward 
forms:  the  Patriarchal,  then  the  Mosaic  or  Jewish.  The  first  was  very 
simple  ;  the  second,  very  complex  and  gorgeous.  Both  continued  perform- 
ing their  functions  for  ages,  then  each  was  displaced  and  gave  way  to  a 
nobler  one.  Mark  w£ll,  each  of  these  was  racial.  Then  came  the  noblest 
of  them  all — called  at  Antioch  the  Christian,  but  styled  by  the  Prince  of 
the  Apostles,  "The  Church  of  the  Living  God;"  non-racial,  therefore,  to 
stand  forever  on  earth  till  she  shall  conquer  all  the  races,  make  them  one 
in  Christ  Jesus,  then  ascend  into  the  heaven  of  heavens,  or  become  "  The 
New  Jerusalem,"  whose  foundations  are  eternal,  whose  inhabitants  are  the 
sinless.  This  Christian  Church,  which  St.  Paul  styles  the  Church  of  the 
Living  God,  is  universal  and  invisible — embracing  all  the  saints  on  earth 
and  all  the  saints  in  heaven.  The  different  denominations  may  be  com- 
pared to  so  many  regiments  in  the  "Grand  Army."  each  of  which  makes 
and  writes  its  own  history. 

Believing  as  we  do  that  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  is  one 
of  the  regiments  of  the  grand  division  of  the  "  Grand  Army,"  and  that  she 
has  to  make  and  write  her  own  history,  we  humbly  present  the  following 
pages  as  preserved  sheets  of  history  already  made  an.d  still  developing. 
May  the  reading  and  studying  of  these  preserved  sheets  contribute  to  the 
intellectual,  moral  and  spiritual  edification  of  its  laity  and  clergy,  stimulat- 
ing their  continuous  growth  in  grace  and  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  to  whom,  with  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  "  be 
blessing  and  glory,  and  wisdom  and  honor,  and  power  and  might,  forever 
given."    Amen  and  amen.  D.  A.  P. 


CONTENTS  OF  PART  FIRST. 


CHAPTER  I. 
Introductory  Reflections. 

Three  Points  of  History— The  Historian's  Task— Its  Fulfillment— In  Civil 
Life  and  Ecclesiastical  Life— Churches  and  Conferences — Pastors  and 
Flocks— Remarkable  Men  and  Women— Bishops— A  Perfect  History  of 
the  Redeemer's  Church  1-2. 

CHAPTER  II. 
Preliminary  Causes  of  Organization. 

Bethel  in  Baltimore  or  Bethel  in  Philadelphia — The  Baltimore  Church  Pos- 
sesses the  Older  Documents  of  History — Testimony  of  Rev.  David  Smith 
and  Rev.  Richard  Allen —General  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Church 
in  1784-17*7 — dnkind  Treatment  of  Colored  Members  in  Philadelphia — 
Bishop  Allen  Consecrates  the  First  Bethel— The  Colored  People  Dis- 
owned as  Methodists  3-8. 

CHAPTER  III. 
Results  of  Separation  from  the  M.  E.  Church. 

Beneficial  Results  to  the  Colored  Man— Colored  Members  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church— A  Comparison— One-fourth  Colored  in  1792— The  African 
Methodist  Church  a  Slander — Self  Government — Self  Support — Proof  of 
Its  Ability  9-12. 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Organization  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

The  Order  of  the  Plan — Election  of  a  Bishop — Daniel  Coker  Elected — He 
Declines — Richard  Allen  Chosen — Bethel  Church  Made  a  Separate 
Charge — Weak  Financial  Condition — Our  Exact  Fathers  13-18. 

CHAPTER  V. 
Baltimore  Conferences,  1820-21-22. 

Conference  of  1820— Twenty-one  Members  Present — Their  Names-  Con- 
ference of  1821— Local  Preachers  Admitted  to  Seats  in  Annual  Con- 
ference—A General  Rule  Adopted— Conference  of  1822—  Bishop  Allen 
Makes  an  Address— A  Long  Debate  in  Reference  to  Western  Terri- 
tory—An Assistant  Bishop  Elected  19-25. 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Early  Conference  Sessions. 

Morris  Brown  Admitted  into  Full  Connection— Three  Founders  Elected 
Deacons  -  Stronghold  of  African  Methodism  in  Philadelphia— Enlarging 
the  Borders— Statistics  of  Membership— Philadelphia  Conference  In- 
vested with  the  Power  of  a  General  Conference— An  Increase  in 

Numbers  26-30. 

(x) 


Contents  of  Purl  First. 


x  i 


CHAPTER  VII. 
Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 

Episcopal  Support  —  Rise  of  African  Methodism  in  the  City  of  New  York- 
New  York  and  Brooklyn  Churches  [ncorporated  with  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  L820 — Societies  outside  of  New  York— Manner  <>!'  Electing 
Delegates  to  General  Conference    Finances  of  the  Second  General  Con- 
ference— The  Slaveholders'  Fear  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  31-45. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
The  First  Decade. 

Close  of  First  Decade — A  Comparison — Twenty-nine  Appointments  in  the 
Baltimore  District— Sixty-rive  Appointments  in  the  Philadelphia  Dis- 
trict— Eight  Churches  in  New  York  District— Growth  since  1818— No 
Sunday-schools  in  1826— Difficulties  Under  Which  the  Ministry  Labored 
— Their  Improvement— Education  of  the  Colored  Population  Forbidden 
— Home  Missions.  46-54. 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Conferences  of  1827,  1828,  1829. 

Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  1827— Philadelphia  Conference— Petition 
from  Canada  for  Pastors— Election  of  Delegates  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  1828 — Rise  of  the  Daughters  of  Conference — Extension  of  the 
Connection — Baltimore  Conference  of  1828 — George  Hogarth's  First  Ap- 
pearance— News  from  Port-au-Prince — Philadelphia  Conference — Morris 
Brown  Elected  and  Ordained  Bishop  55-63. 

CHAPTER  X.  0 
Early  Missionary  Work  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

News  from  Hayti  or  Santo  Domingo —Letter  Asking  Recognition  of  the 
Society  in  Hayti  as  a  Branch  of  Our  Connection — Pledges  to  Submit  to 
Our  Discipline — Samuel  Ente  Devotes  Himself  to  the  Santo  Domingo 
Fields — Ohio  Formed  into  a  Conference — Death  of  Bishop  Allen.  ...64- 70. 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Some  of  the  Founders. 

Life  of  Bishop  Allen — His  Birth  in  a  State  of  Slavery — His  Conversion — 
He  Joins  the  Methodists— The  Way  in  Which  Allen  and  His  Brother 
Treated  Their  Master — He  Reciprocates  Their  Attention  to  His  Inter- 
est—His Opinion  About  the  Influence  of  Religion  on  Slaves  71-93. 

CHAPTER  XII. 
The  Field  of  African  Methodism  in  1832-1835. 

Baltimore  Conference — Philadelphia  Conference — The  General  Confer- 
ence—The Black  Code— The  Book  Committee  of  1832— New  York 
Conference — A  Missionary  to  Canada — Baltimore  Annual  Conference, 
1833— Delaware  Laws — Book  Steward's  Report — Rev.  William  P.  Quinn 
Admitted — Ohio  Conference  Record  of  1833— Action  in  Favor  of  Com- 
mon and  Sunday-Schools — Baltimore  Conference  Held  in  Washington, 
D.  C,  1834  94-108. 


xii 


Contents  of  Part  First. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
End  of  the  Decade. 

Baltimore  Churches  in  183G — Philadelphia  Conference  Increases— Western 
Churches — General  Conference  of  1836 — Revision  of  Discipline  for  Pub- 
lication—Rev. Edward  Waters  Elected  Bishop — Expansion  of  the  West- 
ern Field — Book  Concern  Being  Reduced  to  a  System — Church  Awakened 
— A  Petition  From  Canada  and  Buffalo— Missionaries  Provided,  but  no 
Support — Decree  of  Publication  of  a  Quarterly  Magazine  109-120. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Growth  Westward  and  in  Canada. 

Measures  for  the  Improvement  of  the  Ministry— Plan  to  support  the  Book 
Concern— Plan  for  Replenishing  the  General  Fund  Approved— General 
Recapitulation — Philadelphia  Statistics— Admission  of  Willis  Nazrey  into 
the  Itinerancy — Increase  of  Numbers— Birth  of  the  Canada  and  Indiana 
Conferences— Canadian  Work— Slim  Support  for  Preachers— The  Year 
1840  was  a  Remarkable  One- A  Golden  Opportunity  to  secure  Fruits  of 
our  Missionary  Labors  121-132. 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Closing  Years  of  the  First  Period. 

Proper  Observance  of  the  Sabbath— Ordination  of  Willis  Nazrey  and 
Others— Canada  Conference— Promising  Growth— Baltimore  Conference 
of  1842—  Willis  Nazrey  Admitted  into  Full  Connection— Action  in  Favor 
of  Missions— News  from  the  Haytian  Methodist  Church — Action  of 
Conference— Educational  Interests  Looked  After— D.  A.  Payne's  Pre- 
amble and  Resolution  in  Behalf  of  Ministerial  Education— Financial 
Embarrassment  of  the  Boston  Church— Providence  Prays  for  Independ- 
ent Existence  as  a  Station  133-140. 

'CHAPTER  XVI. 
Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 

Preparations  for  the  Publication  of  the  Magazine— Contents  of  the  First 
Number— The  Magazine's  Existence  of  Eight  Years— Reasons  for  Fail- 
ure—Statistical Presentation -First  Words  on  Ministerial  Education- 
Struggle  in  1843  Between  Ignorance  and  Knowledge— Bishop  Brown  fav- 
oringan  Educated  Ministry— Alexander  Wayman  and  others  Admitted  on 
Probation— D.  A.  Pavne 'and  Others  Admitted  into  Full  Connection- 
Willis  Nazrev  Ordained  Elder— New  York  Conference— J.  P.  Campbell, 
Charles  Burch  and  Thomas  W.  Jackson  Admitted  147-166. 


CONTENTS  OF  PART  SECOND. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 
(  Opening  of  a  New  Era. 

A  New  Period  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church — Seventh  General  Conference — 
Committee  Appointed  on  Revision  of  Discipline— Condition  of  the 
Colored  Inhabitants  of  Illinois  and  Indiana — Work  in  Kentucky  and 
Missouri — Election  and  Ordination  of  William  Paul  Quinn  to  the  Epis- 
copacy— Office  of  General  Book  Steward  Created — Home  and  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  —  Conference  of  1844  —  Good  News  from  Can- 
ada   167-181. 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Lines  of  Progress  in  1845. 

A  Flourishing  Condition  in  Schools  and  Temperance  Societies — First  Ac- 
tive Effort  in  Regard  to  a  Connectional  School— Measures  for  a  School 
East  of  the  Alleghenies — Comprehensive  Report  from  the  Book  Concern 
— Deplorable  State  of  Affairs— Ignorance  Among  the  Colored  People 
Regarding  the  Book  Concern — Importance  of  an  Enlightened  Ministry 
Evident— A  Period  of  Light  Dawning  182-196. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
1846-1847. 

Baltimore  Annual  Conference — A  Proposed  Unionfwith  the  Zion  Wesleyan 
Connection — Philadelphia  Churches — Probationers  Admitted — The  Diffi- 
culties of  1848 — New  York  Churches — Decrees  of  Conference — A  Letter 
to  the  World's  Convention — The  Canadian  Churches  —  Resolutions 
Against  Slaveholding— Ohio  Churches— Statistics  of  the  Ohio  Confer- 
ences— Missionary  Field  Laid  Out — The  New  York  Churches  197-216. 


CHAPTER  XX. 
The  General  Conference  of  1848. 

Eighth  General  Conference— Bishop  Quinn's  Episcopal  Address— A  Third 
Bishop— Monthly  Magazine  to  be  Made  a  Quarterly — The  Christian 
Herald— Book  Concern  Moved  to  Pittsburg — A  Committee  to  Purchase 
the  "  Mystery  " — A  Plan  for  Common  Schools — Important  Amendments 
to  the  Discipline — Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  Appointed  Historiographer  of  the 
Church— Consecration  of  Bethel,  Baltimore,  in  1848  217-235. 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
The  Churches,  1849-1851. 

Condition  of  the  Baltimore  Churches  in  1849 — Philadelphia  Churches- 
Death  of  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown— Lost  Records  of  New  York  and  Can- 
ada— Statement  of  Ohio  Churches — Deluded  Philanthropists — An  Unbe- 
lieving Disciple — Southern  Men's  Acquaintance  with  Northern  Proceed- 
ings— Philadelphia  Churches  in  1851 — Baltimore  Churches — Fugitive 
Slave  Law — Difficulty  in  Canadian  Churches — First  Colored  Methodist 

Church,  Sacramento,  California — Black  Laws  236-260. 

(  xiii  ) 


xiv 


Contents  of  Part  Second. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Bishop  Morris  Brown. 

His  Death  in  1849— An  Extraordinary  Man— A  Christian  and  a  Minister- 
Itinerant  Duties  Over  Thirteen  States -His  Early  Training— His  Personal 
Appearance— Abreast  the  Age  in  Spirit— One  of  His  Sermons— Discourse 
of  Rev.  A.  W.  Wayman  on  the  Death  of  Bishop  Brown— Lines  Written 
Upon  His  Death  261-267. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 
General  Conference  of  1852. 

Opening  Sermon  by  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne—  Bishop's  Address  by  Bishop  W. 
P.  Quinn— Licensing  Women— The  Question  Discussed— Election  of 
Bishops— Rev.  Willis  Nazrey  and  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  Elected  Bishops— 
D.  A.  Payne  Ordained— The  Christian  Herald  Changed  to  Christian 
Recorder  268-279. 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

The  First  Division  into  Episcopal  Districts. 

A  New  Order  of  Things — A  Committee  Appointed  to  Aid  in  the  Manage- 
ment of  the  Book  Concern — New  York  Conference  in  Buffalo — A  Stranger 
as  Foreign  Missionary — Birth  of  a  New  Conference— New  Home  Mission 
Field— First  Division  of  Church  Work  into  Episcopal  Districts — The 
Bishops'  Respective  Fields  of  Labor  280-296. 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
Some  Literature  of  1852-53. 

The  First  Number  of  the  Christian  Recorder  -Contents — Extracts — "Ded- 
icatory Lines,"  by  Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne — Dr.  J.  W.  C.  Pennington's 
Contribution— An  Editorial  on  Licensing  Women  to  Preach — Argu- 
ments Against  It — Lines  by  Rev.  T.  M.  D.  Ward— Other  Writers  and 
Contributors  *  297-305. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 
African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  1854,  1855. 

The  New  England  Conference — Testimony  Against  American  Slavery — 
Prosperous  Condition  of  the  Churches — Temporal  and  Spiritual  Blessings 
— Indiana  Conference — State  of  the  Book  Concern — Christian  Recorder 
Suspended — Two  Ministers  to  be  Appointed  to  Bethel  Church,  Baltimore 
— Bishop  Nazrey 's  Practical  Advice — Canadian  Churches — A  Startling 
Movement   306-327. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

General  Conference  of  1S56. 

Quadrennial  Address— Attention  Called  to  the  Increasing  Literary  Advan- 
tages— Need  of  Financial  Improvement — Need  of  "Oneness  of  Adminis- 
tration"—  The  Book  Concern  Incorporated  —  Request  of  Canadian 
Churches  for  Separation  Granted — Report  of  Committee  on  Slavery — A 
Lengthy  Debate  Results  ,  .328-345. 


Conk  nts  <>(  Pari  Second. 


XV 


OHAPTEB  XXVIII. 
General  Conference  of  1856— Continued. 
The  Divorce  Question — Points  Involved — Proposed  Amendment  Postponed 

— Lengthy  Debate  on  Dress  Limitation  of  Bishops'  Tower  Proposed — 

Bishops'  Residences- Synapsis  of  Important  Points— The  Proposition 
from  the  M.  E.  Church  Concerning  Education  Rejected— How  a  Bishop 
Shall  be  Constituted — On  Maladministration — The  Bishops  to  Itineiate — 
Their  Salary — A  New  Episcopal  Seal  346-360. 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
Separation  from  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

The  Last  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Canada— Episcopal 
Form  of  Government  Adopted— Relations  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  to  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church— Articles  of  Faith— The  New  Twenty-third  Article  by 
D.  A.  Payne — Bishop  Nazrey's  Name  Proposed  for  Bishop — Bishop  Payne 
Explains  the  Designs  of  the  General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
— Organization  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church — Bishop  Nazrey  Elected  its  Frst 
Bishop — Reflections — Missions  Established  in  Central  America. ..361-392. 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

« 

Review  of  Education  to  1856. 

Founders  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  — Daniel  Coker  the  Most  Intellectual  of 
the  Sixteen— English,  American  and  African  Methodism — A  Contrast — 
Ohio  Annual  Conference  First  to  Speak  on  Education  in  1833— A  Voice 
Nine  Years  Later— D.  A.  Payne's  "Epistles" — Bishop  Morris  Brown's 
Advice — First  Educational  Convention  in  1845 — Wilberforce  University 
Founded  in  1856— Bishop  Pavne's  First  Connection  with  It — The  Hand 
of  God— Dawn  at  Hand  393-401. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 
A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades. 

Events  of  1856— Reports  from  Conferences  upon  the  Subject  of  Education 
— A  Comparison — The  Episcopal  Fields  of  Labor  to  I860 — Visit  of  Rev. 
Mansfield  French  to  the  Ohio  Conference  of  1856 — Contemporaneous 
Bishops — Results  of  Labors  of  the  First  Itinerants —  816  and  1856  Con- 
trasted— Tables  of  Comparative  Progress— Summary  in  1826— Summary 
in  1856 — Detailed  View  of  the  Results  of  the  Fourth  Decade — The  Seven 
Conferences  in  1856  402-418. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 
The  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 

Literary  Qualifications — Present  Bishops— ^Development  of  Christian  Char- 
acter— Christian  Education — Wilberforce  University  Under  the  Auspices 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church — Catastrophe  of  1865 — Methods  of  Work — Sum- 
mary of  Results  From  1863  to  1876  419-438. 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
Institutions  of  Learning. 
Some  Explanations — Young  Women's  Reading  Room — First  Literary  So- 
ciety for  Young  Women — Young  Men's  Reading  Room — Work  Subse- 
quent to  1876 — Bishop  Payne's  Successors  in  Office — Changes  in  Instruct- 
ors—  Work  Up  to  1886— List  of  Other  Institutions  of  Learning  Under 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church — Allen  Universitv— Morris  Brown  College — Paul 
Quinn  College— Later  Work  439-451, 


xvi 


Contents  of  Part  Second. 


CHAPTER  XXXIY. 
Music  and  the  Fine  Arts. 

Origin  and  Progress  of  Music — Origin  of  Choral  Singing— Composition  of 
the  Choir  of  "Old  Bethel"  Church,  Philadelphia— The  Choir  in  the 
Mother  Church,  Baltimore— Introduction  of  the  Organ— Organization  of 
the  Choir  in  Washington,  D.  C. — The  Boston  Choir  and  Organ — Choir 
and  Organ  in  Bethel,  New  York — Advance  Movement  in  Sacred  Music — 
New  Bethel  in  Philadelphia  452-464. 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
Extension  of  the  Church  at  Home. 

Growth  in  Membership — Exaggerated  Statements — Increase  in  Two  De- 
cades— Preparations  for  Expansion — Political  Struggle  Between  Slavery 
and  Liberty — Door  Opened  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church — Summons  to  Enter 
the  Far  South — Under  Military  Protection — Missionaries  Selected — Fare- 
well Sermons— Missionaries  to  the  Freedmen — Penal  Laws  of  1834  in 
South  Carolina — Bishop  Pavne's  Exile — First  Missionary  Operations  in 

the  South  \  465-474. 

i 

CHAPTER  XXXYI. 
Extension  in  Foreign  Lands. 

The  Island  of  Hayti — Aborigines — Santo  Domingo — Historical  Facts — 
Abolishment  of  Slavery — Failure  to  Restore  Slavery  in  Hayti — Havtian 
Heroes— The  Haytians  and  the  A.  M.  E.  Church— The  Missionary  Work 
up  to  1880 — Re-establishment  of  the  Mission  in  Hayti — Work  in  Port- 
au-Prince — Early  Work  in  Santo  Domingo — Missionaries  in  the  Spanish 
Part— Work  in  Africa— The  Missionary  Society  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
— Our  Own  Foundations  "  475-4U2. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 
The  Connectional  Sunday-School  Union. 

A  Grand  Enterprise— The  Man  for  the  Work— Rev  Dr.  C.  S.  Smith— His 
Proposition — Organization  of  the  Sunday-Schooi  Union — Removal  from 
Bloomington,  111.,  to  Nashville,  Tenn. — Financial  Management — Supply 
of  Sunday-Schooi  Literature— The  New  Publishing  House— The  Sunday- 
School  Union  and  its  Future — Road  to  Success  for  all  Departments — 
Closing  Reflections  493-498. 


PART  FIRST. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY  REFLECTIONS. 

Three  Points  of  History— The  Historian's  Task  -Its  Fulfillment— In  Civil 
Life  and  Ecclesiastical  Life — Churches  and  Conferences — Pastors  and 
Flocks — Remarkable  Men  and  Women — Bishops — A  Perfect  History  of 
the  Redeemer's  Church. 

IN  all  history  there  exists  the  necessity  of  three  great  points, 
and  without  these  being  brought  forward  and  cleared  of  all 
superincumbent  affairs  which  do  not  accord  with  them,  no  prop- 
erly written  history  or  accurate  knowledge  can  be  obtained. 
The  first  of  these  three  points,  which  must  be  brought  out  clearly 
before  the  mind,  is  the  actual  facts — facts  which  will  stand  the 
severest  test  and  bear  the  truth  upon  their  face.  The  next  point 
of  importance  is  the  judicial  weighing  of  this  testimony — the 
patient  unraveling  of  the  tangled  skein;  the  gathering  up  of  the 
broken  ends  and  the  piecing  of  the  fragments  and  bringing  them 
into  a  harmonious  whole.  To  do  this,  we  are  required  to  make 
inquiries  into  the  nature  of  things — the  condition  of  affairs 
which  led  to  the  ultimate  consummation  of  what  took  place — or  in 
other  words,  Why  did  the  facts,  which  we  know  to  have  occurred, 
so  occur?  There  must  have  been  some  reason  for  events  shap- 
ing themselves  in  the  way  they  did.  The  third  great  question 
before  us  is  the  results  following  such  a  course  of  events.  In  the 
performance  of  this  duty,  the  historian,  if  he  will  faithfully  per- 
form his  duty,  has  no  easy  work  before  him.  It  is  his  obligation 
not  only  to  exhibit  facts  as  they  are  and  occurrences  as  they 
were ;  the  character  of  private  and  public  men  as  their  conduct 
manifested  it;  to  tell  of  governments  and  the  principles  by  which 
they  developed  themselves ;  of  legislators  and  the  laws  which 
emanated  from  them ;  but  also  to  show  the  effects  of  these  upon 
the  people  among  whom  they  obtained,  both  in  times  of  peace 
and  warfare ;  to  trace  their  influence  upon  surrounding  nations 


9 


2  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

and  the  influence  of  surrounding  nations  upon  them,  until  they 
have  reached  the  climax  of  their  prosperity;  depicting  their  vir- 
tues and  vices  in  the  most  graphic  manner,  extolling  the  one  and 
denouncing  the  other;  thus  following  the  subjects  of  his  story 
from  infancy  to  old  age  and  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave  of  their 
national  existence,  bringing  to  light  the  invisible  hand  of  the 
God  of  nations  which  led  them  through  all  their  vicissitudes,  now 
exalting  them  on  account  of  their  virtues  and  then  casting  them 
down  because  of  their  vices.  Thus  does  he  fulfill  his  difficult  task 
— teaching  mankind  by  living  and  striking  examples  that 
"Righteousness  exalteth  a  nation;  but  sin  is  a  reproach  to  any 
people."  This  is  the  business  of  him  who  writes  a  history  of 
man  in  civil  life.  Similar  is  the  work  of  him  who  writes  of 
man  in  ecclesiastical  life. 

May  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  help  us  to  write  concerning 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  as  a  faithful  historian 
— as  one  who  will  not  be  warped  by  envy,  bribed  by  gold,  nor 
awed  by  power.  In  the  execution  of  the  task  allotted  to  us  by 
the  General  Conference  of  1848,  we  shall  describe  the  most 
prominent  churches  and  the  respective  Conferences  and  show 
how  the  one  became  the  legitimate  offspring  of  the  other.  We 
shall  portray  the  life  and  character  of  the  pastors  as  far  and  as 
well  as  materials  will  admit.  We  will  show  the  general  character 
of  the  flocks  and  the  particular  characters  of  the  most  remarka- 
ble men  and  women  among  them.  We  shall  portray  the 
characters  of  the  Bishops  and  the  ministers  in  general,  holding 
up  to  public  admiration  the  local  preachers  who  distinguished 
themselves  either  by  their  piety,  their  talents  or  their  usefulness. 
We  shall  show  how  the  several  General  Conferences  were  consti- 
tuted; how  these  Conferences  maintained  their  intellectual 
character  by  their  respective  enactments;  and  how  these  enact- 
ments affected  the  character  of  the  churches  for  weal  or  for  woe. 
We  shall  also  give  the  history  of  the  Fine  Arts — architecture, 
music,  painting  and  poetry — as  cultivated  by  members  of  the  A. 
M.  E.  Church.  Moreover,  we  shall  give  a  view  of  its  doctrines  and 
government.  The  History  of  the  Redeemer's  Church  cannot  be 
perfect  till  this  is  written.  Mankind  cannot  know  it  as  a  whole 
till  they  shall  have  read  this  history. 


CHAPTER  II. 


PRELIMINARY  CAUSES  OF  ( ) R( i A NIZATION. 


Bethel  in  Baltimore  or  Bethel  in  Philadelphia — The  Baltimore  Church  Pos- 
sesses the  Older  Documents  of  History — Testimony  of  Rev.  David  Smith  and 
Rev.  Richard  Allen—  General  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Church  in  1781 
17X7 — Unkind  Treatment  of  Colored  Members  in  Philadelphia  Bishop 
Allen  Consecrates  the  First  Bethel — The  Colored  People  Disowned  as 
Methodist-. 


HETHER  Bethel  Church  in  Baltimore  or  Bethel  Church 


y/ y  in  Philadelphia  is  the  first  born,  has  been  contested.  Some 
of  the  oldest  among  our  ministers  and  among  our  laity  contend 
that  the  Baltimore  church  wag  first  organized;  others,  that 
the  Philadelphia  church  had  a  prior  origin.  Whether  the 
former  church  is  entitled  to  be  considered  the  oldest  church  of 
the  Connection  or  not  may  be  forever  a  disputed  point  in 
the  history  of  our  Church,  but  it  is  undisputed  that  the 
firsi  record  of  any  of  the  proceedings  of  the  rulers  and  fathers  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  is  dated  from  that  city,  and  the  testi- 
mony of  Rev.  David  Smith,  one  of  the  early  pioneers  of 
our  ministry,  corroborated  by  a  letter  written  by  the  Rev. 
Richard  Allen  on  February  18th,  1816,  is  to  the  effect  that  the 
separation  of  the  Church  in  Baltimore  took  place  three  weeks 
before  the  lawsuit  in  Philadelphia  which  forever  released  us  from 
the  oppression  that  really  brought  about  our  Church  freedom. 

But  then  again,  while  the  Baltimore  Conference  can  produce 
older  documents  touching  its  history  than  can  be  found 
concerning  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  by  at  least  four  years, 
the  priority  would  seem  to  belong  to  Philadelphia  on  the 
grounds  that  the  church  there  can  produce  written  records 
of  her  origin  dating  farther  back  than  any  discovered  in 
Baltimore.*  But,  be  this  as  it  may,  the  preliminary  causes  which 
led  to  the  organization  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  are  to  be  found  in  what  follows  : 

In  1784,  the  Rev.  John  Wesley  ordained  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Coke,  LL.  D.  (a  member  of  Jesus  College,  in  the  University  of 
Oxford)  for    the  office    of    Bishop,    and  sent  him    over  to 

•Of  course  we  are  now  speaking  of  these  Churches  as  independent  societies,  antecedent 
to  their  becoming  integral  parts  of  the  A.  M.  K.  Church. 


(3) 


4 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


this  country  to  organize  the  various  societies  of  Methodists  then 
existing  chiefly  in  the  cities  of  New  York,  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore,  into  an  ecclesiastical  association.  These  societies 
were  planted  in  America  through  the  agency  of  certain  local 
preachers  from  Ireland,  the  chief  of  whom  were  Philip  Embury 
in  New  York  and  Robert  Strawbridge,  who  having  emigrated  to 
Frederick  county  in  the  state  of  Maryland,  therein  preached  and 
formed  societies.  In  the  month  of  December  and  on  the  25th 
day  in  the  year  above  mentioned,  all  the  societies  founded  in 
America  by  Methodist  preachers  were  consolidated  into  one 
body  by  the  General  Conference  held  in  the  city  of  Baltimore, 
Bishop  Coke  presiding,  assisted  by  Bishop  Asbury.  The  latter 
was  ordained  by  the  former. 

About  three  years  after  this  organization  of  the  M.  E  Church, 
the  colored  members  of  that  body  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia, 
suffering  from  the  "unkind  treatment  of  their  white  brethren, 
who  considered  them  a  nuisance  in  the  house  of  worship," 
met  for  the  purpose  of  canvassing  their  wrongs  and  devising 
means  to  remedy  the  same.  The  result  of  this  meeting  was 
the  determination  to  erect  a  house  of  worship  wherein  they 
could  worship  God  under  their  own  "  vine  and  fig-tree."  In 
their  efforts  to  accomplish  this  object  they  met   with  great 

opposition  from  Elder  J.  McC  ,who  declared  if  they  did  not 

give  up  the  building,  erase  their  names  from  the  subscription 
paper,  and  make  proper  acknowledgements,  they  should  be 
publicly  expelled.  Conscious  of  their  rights  as  men  and  Chris- 
tians, and  of  the  rectitude  of  their  motives,  they  regarded  not  the 
mandate  of  the  reverend  gentleman  and  sent  in  their  resignations. 
While  in  this  condition  the  Lord  raised  up  friends  to  counsel 
and  assist  them,  in  the  persons  of  many  of  the  most  respectable 
and  influential  white  citizens,  the  chief  of  whom  were  Dr. 
Benjamin  Rush  and  Mr.  R.  Ralston.  Bishop  White  was  also 
among  their  illustrious  benefactors,  for  he  ordained  the  Rev. 
Absalom  Jones  to  be  their  pastor,  who  of  course  was  ordained 
according  to  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

In  1793,  the  numbers  of  the  serious  people  of  color  having 
increased,  they  were  of  different  opinions  respecting  the  mode 
of  religious  worship,  and  as  many  felt  a  strong  partiality  for 
that  adopted  by  the  Methodists,  Richard  Allen,  with  the  advice 


Preliminary  Causes  of  Organization. 


5 


of  some  of  his  brethren,  proposed  the  erection  of  a  place  of 
worship  oil  his  own  ground  and  at  his  own  expense,  as  an 
African  Methodist  meeting-house.  This  movement  was  violently 
opposed  by  the  preachers  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  who  also  insisted 
that  the  house  should  he  made  over  to  the  Conference.  The 
building  was  soon  finished  and  Bishop  Asbury  by  invitation 
consecrated  it  to  the  service  of  the  Most  High.  The  house  was 
called  Bethel,  after  the  example  and,  I  trust,  in  the  spirit  of 
Jacob. 

It  was  now  proposed  by  the  resident  Elder  (J.  McC  )  that 

they  should  have  the  church  incorporated  that  they  might 
receive  any  donations  or  legacy  as  well  as  enjoy  any  other 
advantages  arising  therefrom.  This  was  agreed  to,  and  in  order 
to  save  expense,  the  Elder  proposed  to  draw  it  up  for  them.  But 
they  soon  found  that  he  had  done  it  in  such  a  manner  as  to  en- 
tirely deprive  them  of  the  liberty  they  expected  to  enjoy.  In  this 
condition  they  suffered  grievances  both  numerous  and  painful. 
Sometimes  demanding  the  keys,  at  other  times  declaring  they 
should  have  no  more  meetings  without  his  permission,  the  Rev. 

J.  S          thus  embarrassed  them  until  they  were  driven  by  force 

of  circumstances  to  ask  legal  advice.  This  led  the  congregation 
to  sign  a  petition  to  the  Legislature  of  Pennsylvania  for  a  sup- 
plement to  their  deed,  which  petition  that  body  readily  granted. 
This  liberated  them  from  numerous  difficulties,  but  did  not 
drive  their  opponents  from  the  field.  In  order  to  adjust  matters, 
they  proposed  supplying  them  with  preaching,  if  they  would 
give  six  hundred  dollars  per  year  to  the  Methodist  Society.  The 
congregation  refused  to  give  so  large  a  sum,  and  the  preacher  pro- 
posed to  serve  for  four  hundred  ;  but  this  also  they  refused  to 
give,  whereupon  the  preachers  agreed  to  preach  twice  a  week 
during  the  year  for  two-hundred  dollars.  But  it  proved  to  be 
only  six  or  seven  times  a  year  that  they  were  served  with  preach- 
ing and  then,  sometimes,  by  such  preachers  as  were  not  accepta- 
ble to  the  people  and  not  in  much  esteem  among  the  Methodists 
as  preachers.  Our  people  being  displeased  with  such  treatment, 
compelled  the  trustees  to  resolve  to  give  but  one-hundred  dol- 
lars per  year  to  the  preachers.  When  a  quarterly  payment  of  the 
Last  sum  was  tendered  it  was  refused  and  sent  back,  the  two  hun- 
dred dollars  being  insisted  upon  or  they  would  preach  no  more. 


6 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  church. 


The  authorities  of  the  ehurch  then  waited  upon  Bishop 
Asbury  and  requested  him  to  furnish  them  with  a  preacher, 
promising  to  give  him  ample  support,  provided  he  would  do  all 
the  duties  of  a  pastor.  The  Bishop  said  he  did  not  think  there 
was  more  than  one  preacher  belonging  to  the  Conference  who 
could  attend  to  those  duties,  and  that  was  Richard  Allen.  The 
Bishop  was  again  informed  that  the  people  would  pay  a  preacher 
four  or  five  hundred  dollars  a  year  if  he  would  perform  all  the 
duties  incumbent  on  his  office.  He  replied.  k>  We  will  not  serve 
you  on  such  terms.'1    Sometime  after  this  interview  with  Bishop 

Asbury,  Elder  S.  R  declared  that  if  the  supplement  were  not 

repealed,  neither  he  nor  any  of  the  preachers,  itinerant  or  local, 
would  preach  for  our  people  any  more.  At  length  the  preachers 
and  stewards  of  the  Academy  offered  to  serve  them  on  the 
same  terms  which  had  been  made  to  the  preachers  of  St. 
George's  Church.  This  proposition  was  acceded  to  and  then  they 
had  preaching  for  about  twelve  months,  after  which  they 
demanded  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  year.  This  sum 
was  refused  and  they  declined  to  preach  any  more.  The  local 
preachers  of  the  Academy  were  also  threatened  with  expulsion  if 
they  dared  to  serve  our  people.  About  this  time  the  elder  of 
the  Academy  published  a  circular  letter,  in  which  our  people 
were  disowned  as  Methodists.  A  house  was  also  fitted  up,  not  far 
from  Bethel,  and  an  invitation  was  given  to  all  who  desired  to  be 
Methodists  to  resort  thither ;  but  being  disappointed  in  this  plan, 
the  resident  elder  of  St.  George's  went  to  Bethel  and  insisted  on 
preaching  to  them  and  taking  the  spiritual  charge,  declaring  that 
he  would  do  so  because  they  were  Methodists.  Being  told  that 
he  should  come  on  some  terms  with  the  trustees,  he  replied  that 
he  did  not  come  to  consult  with  Richard  Allen  nor  the  trustees, 
but  to  inform  the  congregation  that  on  the  next  Sunday  he 
would  come  and  take  charge  of  them,  to  which  reply  was  made 
that  he  could  not  preach  for  them  under  such  circumstances.  At 
the  appointed  hour,  however,  the  said  elder  went  to  Bethel,  but 
the  people  had  so  obstructed  the  aisle  of  the  church  that  he  could 
get  but  halfway  to  the  pulpit;  meanwhile  one  of  our  number 
was  occupying  it.  Finding  himself  thwarted,  he  appealed  to 
those  who  came  with  him  as  witnesses  that,  "That  man,"  meaning 
the  preacher  in  the  pulpit,  had  taken  his  appointment,  after 


Preliminary  ('ousts  qf  Organization. 


7 


which  he  departed.   The  next  elder  stationed  at  Philadelphia 

was  R.  B  ,  who,  following  t  he  example  of  his  predecessor,  came 

and  published  a  meeting  for  himself;  hut  the  afore-mentioned 
precaution  having  been  taken,  he  went  away  without,  effecting 
the  object  desired,  [n  consequence  of  this  disappointment  he 
applied  to  the  Supreme  Court  tor  a  writ  of  mandamus.  This 
brought  on  a  law-suit,  which  ended  in  favor  of  Bethel.  Thus  we 
were  delivered,  forever  delivered  as  well  from  a  distressing  and 
expensive  law  suit  as  from  our  oppressors. 

About  this  time  the  eolored  people  in  Baltimore  and  other 
places  were  treated  in  a  similar  manner  as  in  Philadelphia,  and 
rather  than  go  to  law,  chose  to  seek  places  of  worship  for  them- 
selves This  constrained  the  Philadelphians  to  call  a  General 
Convention  in  April,  1816,  to  form  an  Ecclesiastical  Compact. 
At  this  Convention,  Bishop Quinn — then  a  lad  of  ahout  eighteen 
or  nineteen  years  of  age—  was  present,  hut  not  a  member. 
Brother  Jonathan  Tudas  was  also  present,  hut  not  a  member. 
Between  the  two,  the  writer  w7as  enabled  to  make  out  the  list  of 
members  in  attendance  at  this  Convention — there  never  having 
been  any  printed  minutes,  and  the  manuscript  being  lost,  there 
were  no  other  sources  of  information  except  among  the  fathers  of 
the  Church  who  were  living  in  1850.  The  testimony  of  Jonathan 
Tudas  does  not  differ  materially  from  that  already  stated,  except 
that  he  gives  the  incident  which  led  directly  to  the  proclamation 
shutting  out  our  people  from  the  M.  E.  Church.  A  woman  was 
accused  and  convicted  of  adultery.  Immediately  after  love-feast 
she  reported  to  the  preacher  in  charge  of  St.  George's  Church  that 
she  had  been  unlawfully  and  unjustly  expelled;  whereupon  he 
sent  her  to  Richard  Allen  with  this  message,  substantially,  that 
he  must  restore  her  back  to  membership.  This  Mr.  Allen  stated 
could  not  be  done;  The  preacher  then  filled  out  a  love-feast 
ticket  and  bade  her  take  it  to  the  keeper  of  the  door,  stating  that 
he  would  not  dare  refuse  her  admission  ;  but  she  met  the  refusal, 

nevertheless,  in  the  reply  that  if  Mr.  R  ,  the  preacher  himself, 

should  come  presenting  the  ticket  with  her  name,  he  should  not 
enter.  Because  of  this  Mr.  Allen  took  the  deed  of  the  church  to 
proper  parties,  who  told  him  that  according  to  the  letter  and 

spirit  of  the  deed,  Mr.  R  could  lock  up  the  church  against  him, 

and  that  he  could  prevent  this  only  by  having  a  supplement  to 


8 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


the  deed.  This  was  drawn  up  immediately,  and  acknowledged  by 
the  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court.  It  was  then  confirmed  by  the 
authorities  at  Lancaster,  ^he  seat  of  government,  where  it  was 

sent    Mr.  R  in  the  meantime  tried  to  see  the  deed  but  was 

put  off  by  Richard  Allen,  who  appointed  the  day  upon  which  he 
could  obtain  it,  and  then  handed  to  the  discomfited  preacher  the 

supplement.   "  Well,  then,"  said  Mr.  R  I  suppose  you  think 

you  have  done  it!"  On  the  following  Sabbath  he  published 
from  the  pulpit  of  St.  George's  Church,  that  Richard  Allen  and 
his  adherents  were  no  longer  members  of  the  M.  E.  Church. 

After  the  failures  to  abide  by  what  had  been  promised  in  the 
way  of  preaching  for  us,  and  the  consequent  refusal  of  the 
Quarterly  Conference  to  pay  for  what  had  not  been  done, 
Brother  Tudas  gives  us  the  details  of  the  next  step  :  Then  Mr. 
Emory  fitted  up  a  house  at  the  corner  of  Third  and  Lombard 
streets.  Robert  Green,  a  colored  man,  also  bought  a  house, 
where  in  1851,  St.  Mary's  Street  Church  stood,  and  invited  the 
members  of  Bethel  who  wished  to  be  Methodists  to  come  there, 
at  the  same  time  telling  them  he  would  sell  Bethel.  Doubting 
which  would  have  pre-eminence,  the  supplement  or  the  deed,  he 
made  his  fears  known  to  the  people.  Then  the  trustees  and 
congregation  agreed  to  secure  the  property  for  the  use  of  our 
people  by  giving  Mr.  Allen  a  bond-mortgage  upon  it,  as  he  held 
a  claim  of  $6,300  against  it.  The  church  had  also  borrowed 
about  $4,000  from  him  and  was  indebted  to  him,  aside  from  this 
for  his  services  as  a  pastor,  to  the  amount  of  $1,400.  Mr.  Allen's 
claims,  therefore,  amounted  to  $11,700.  The  house  was  put  up 
for  sale,  Mr.  Green  bidding  against  Mr.  Allen  who  bought  it  in 
for  $10,500.  Such  were  the  causes  that  brought  about  the  origin 
of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Does  it  need  the 
eye  of  a  philosopher  to  see  the  hand  of  God  in  all  this  ?  We  have 
often  been  blamed  for  our  separate  organization,  and  our  fathers 
have  been  blamed  for  bringing  about  that  organization.  The 
blame  is  as  unjust  as  it  is  cruel.  Let  it  be  fastened  upon 
those  who  pulled  our  fathers  from  their  knees  as  they  humbly 
bowed  themselves  in  the  sanctuary  to  worship  that  God  who  has, 
declared  himself  to  be  no  respecter  of  persons.  Let  the  censure 
fall  with  ten-fold  weight  upon  the  heads  of  those  who  still  per- 
petuate invidious  distinctions  in  the  house  of  the  Living  God. 


CHAPTER  III. 

RESULTS  OF  SEPARATION  FROM  THE  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

Beneficial  Results  to  the  Colored  Men — Colored  Members  of  the  A.  M.  K. 
Church — A  Comparison — One-fourth  Colored  in  1792 — The  African  Methodist 
Church  a  Slander — Self  Government — Self  Support— Proof  of  Its  Ability. 

AS  to  the  result  of  this  separation  from  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church,  permit  us  to  remark  that  it  has  been  really 
beneficial  to  the  man  of  color.  First :  It  has  thrown  us  upon  our 
own  resources  and  made  us  tax  our  own  mental  powers  both  for 
government  and  support :  For  government — viewed  in  the  light 
of  official  responsibility — when  we  were  under  the  control  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  we  were  dependent  upon  them  for  our  ministerial 
instructions.  They  supplied  our  pulpits  with  preachers,  deacons 
and  elders,  and  these  in  the  vast  majority  of  instances  were 
white  men.  Hence  if  the  instructions  given  were  of  the  right 
kind,  the  merit  was  the  white  man's  and  his  alone ;  so  also,  if 
the  manner  of  instruction  was  pleasing,  the  merit  was  the  white 
man's  and  his  alone.    The  colored  man  was  a  mere  hearer. 

Again  :  we  were  dependent  upon  them  for  government.  Not 
only  were  the  presiding  elders  and  preachers  in  charge  all  white 
men,  but  in  a  multitude  of  instances  the  very  class  leaders  were 
also  white.  So  then,  if  the  churches  among  the  colored  people 
were  well  governed,  the  merit  was  the  white  man's  and  his 
alone.    The  colored  man  was  a  mere  subject. 

But,  again :  Although  the  colored  members  of  the  M.  E. 
Church  always  supported  to  their  utmost  ability  the  institu- 
tions of  the  Connection,  yet  because  their  white  brethren  were 
so  vastly  in  the  majority,  that  support  which  was  so  cheerfully 
and  cordially  given  could  not  be  felt.  This  was  not  only  true  of 
us  when  we  formed  a  constituent  element  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
but  it  is  equally  true  to-day  of  our  colored  brethren  who  still 
continue  in  connection  with  it.  In  the  southern  states  the  col- 
ored members  of  the  M.  E.  Church  are  numerous.  In  1792  all  the 
colored  members  of  that  church  amounted  to  13,871.  In  1815, 
the  whole  number  was  43,187.     In  1828,  the  whole  number  was 

(9) 


10 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


54,065.  In  1840,  it  was  87,197.  The  whole  number  in  the  M.  E. 
Church  ran  thus  : 


Since  the  division  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  which  took  place  in 
1844,  the  statistics  of  both  Churches  throw  the  colored  and 
Indian  members  into  one  and  the  same  column,  so  that  is  is  im- 
possible to  know  from  the  tallies  before  us  the  whole  number  of 
colored  members  belonging  to  the  M.  E.  Church,  North  and 
South.  But  from  this  it  will  be  seen  that  in  1792  the  number  of 
the  colored  members  constituted  but  about  one-fourth  of  the 
whole  Methodist  fellowship  in  the  states.  In  1828,  about 
thirteen  years  after,  it  constituted  still  about  one-fourth.  In 
1840,  about  twelve  years  later,  it  formed  less  than  one-seventh 
of  the  whole  Church,  and  in  1845,  it  formed  about  one-tenth. 
So,  viewed  in  whatever  light  you  please,  the  existence  of 
the  colored  man  as  a  factor  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  always  was, 
still  is,  and  ever  must  lie  a  mere  cipher.  The  tendency  of  all 
this  was  to  prove  that  the  colored  man  was  incapable  of  self- 
government  and  self-support  and  thereby  confirm  the  oft  repeat- 
ed assertions  of  his  enemies,  that  he  really  is  incapable  of  self- 
government  and  self-support.  But  is  not  the  existence  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  a  flat  contradiction  and 
triumphant  refutation  of  this  slander,  so  foul  in  itself  and 
so  degrading  in  its  influence  ?  For  the  last  seventy  years  a 
period  of  more  than  seven-tenths  of  a  century,  it  has  been  gov- 
erning itself  and  supporting  itself.  Being  compelled  to  teach 
others,  its  ministry  has  been  constrained  to  teach  itself.  This 
has  eaused  them  to  seek  knowledge  on  the  right  hand  and  on 
the  left.  It  has  forced  them  to  implore  and  exjidore  earth  and 
heaven  for  information  that  they  might  be  able  to  lead  the  erring 
souls  of  men  from  the  one  to  the  other.  Compelled  to  gov- 
ern others,  its  ministry  has  been  constrained  to  read  and  inves- 
tigate church  history  for  models  of  government.  They  have 
also  been  led  to  cogitate  for  themselves  ;  to  discriminate  between 
laws  which  were  just,  and  those  which  were  unjust ;  to  expunge 


Year. 
1815 
1828 
1840. 
1845 


Whites. 
..167,978. 
..327,932.. 
...650,357 
.1,024,460 


Colored. 
..43,187 
..54,065 
...87,197 
.145,435 


Remits  of  Separation  From  the  M.  E.  Church.  II 

from  the  statutes  of  the  Church  those  which  were  unequal  in  their 
bearings  and  to  substitute  those  of  a  more  equable  character, 
so  that  the  Mood-washed  Hock  of  Christ  might  walk  before  him 
in  all  peace  and  quietness,  feeling  that  the  ecclesiastical  yoke 
and  burdens  arc  both  easy  and  light. 

The  ability  of  our  Church  (as  a  distinct  branch  of  the  Chris- 
tian family)  to  provide  for  itself,  even  in  its  early  life,  can  also 
be  clearly  demonstrated  by  the  following  facts:  Within  the 
twelve  years  from  L84]  to  1853,  the  members  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  built,  and  also  rebuilt,  three 
churches  in  the  city'  of  Philadelphia,  one  of  which  cost  about 
$16,000,  the  Other  over  06,000  and  the  third  about  $5,000.  In  the 
same  period  we  built  and  remodelled  two  churches  in  the  city  of 
Baltimore,  one  of  which  cost  about  $16,000.  In  the  same  period 
we  built  one  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh  at  the  eost  of  about  $10,000. 
At  the  same  time  we  built  one  in  Cincinnati,  one  in  Washington, 
1).  C,  and  one  in  New  Orleans — the  first  at  a  cost  of  $10,000. 

Compelled  to  support  their  own  institutions,  our  members 
have  learned  to  economize  and  to  forecast  as  they  never  could  or 
would,  had  they  remained  in  connection  with  their  white  breth- 
ren. Does  any  man  require  the  proofs  of  these  assertions?  Let 
him  go  to  all  these  cities,  to  New  York,  to  St.  Louis,  to  Nashville, 
and  others  as  well.  There  he  will  see  the  commodious  and  beau- 
tiful edifices  which  have  been  constructed  and  dedicated  by  our- 
selves to  the  worship  of  Almighty  God — edifices  varying  in  their 
costs  from  $3,000  to  $60,000.  Let  him  go  to  Philadelphia  and 
see  our  Book  Concern,  where  our  hymn  books,  disciplines 
and  weekly  papers  are  published,  which,  though  in  a  very  imper- 
fect and  infant  state,  give  every  evidence  of  an  intellect  that  is  at 
work  for  itself,  and  for  its  own  development  Let  him  go  to  our 
Sunday-School  Publishing  House  in  Nashville,  where  our  own  Sab- 
bath-school literature  is  issued  and  publications  brought  forth. 
Let  him  go  to  our  several  seats  of  learning — to  Wilberforce, 
near  Xenia,  O.,  to  Allen  University  at  Columbia,  S.  C,  to  Paul 
Quinn  College  at  Waco,  Texas,  to  Morris  Brown  College  at 
Atlanta,  Ga. — there  he  will  see  our  children  and  our  youth  under 
the  culture  of  educated  men  and  women  giving  the  pledge 
of  minds  that  will  in  the  development  of  mature  powers,  cause 
the  world  to  know  that  they  lived  and  lived  to  good  purpose. 


12 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Let  him  visit  our  churches  where  he  may  often  hear  preachers, 
who  by  their  native  talents  or  literary  acquirements  (and  some- 
times both)  demonstrate  to  the  most  prejudiced  hearer  that 
the  man  of  color  can  think  for  himself  and  guide  the  sacramental 
host  into  the  fullness  of  the  blessings  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

Secondly  and  lastly  :  The  separation  of  our  Church  from  the 
M.  E.  Church,  which  was  brought  about  by  the  agency  of  our 
venerated  fathers,  the  Rev.  Richard  Allen  of  Philadelphia  and 
Rev.  Daniel  Coker  of  Baltimore,  has  been  beneficial  to  the  man  of 
color  by  giving  him  an  independence  of  character  which  he 
could  neither  hope  for  nor  attain  unto,  if  he  had  remained  as  the 
ecclesiastical  vassal  of  his  white  brethren.  This  is  evident  from 
the  training  which  the  force  of  circumstances  has  given  us. 
These  circumstances  have  been  such  as  to  produce  independent 
thought;  this  has  resulted  in  independent  action;  this  in- 
dependent action  has  resulted  in  the  extension  of  our  ecclesias- 
tical organization  over  nearly  all  of  the  States  and  also  into 
Canada;  this  ecclesiastical  organization  has  given  us  an  in- 
dependent hierarchy,  and  this  independent  hierarchy  has  made  us 
feel  and  recognize  oar  individuality  and  our  heaven-created 
manhood. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  A.  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

The  Order  of  the  Plan — Election  of  a  Bishop — Daniel  Coker  Elected — He 
Declines — Richard  Allen  Chosen — Bethel  Church  made  a  Separate  Charge 
— Weak  Financial  Condition — Our  Exact  Fathers. 

IT  has  been  already  intimated  that  the  question  is  not  settled 
relative  to  the  parent  churches  in  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore, 
whether  the  latter  had  a  separate  and  distinct  origin  before  the 
former  or  not.  But  in  pursuing  this  narrative  we  purpose  for 
the  sake  of  order  and  convenience  to  commence  with  the 
churches  farthest  South  and  trace  them  northward;  with  the 
churches  farthest  East,  and  trace  them  westward ;  with  the 
Baltimore  Conference  first,  not  only  because  its  written  proceed- 
ings date  beyond  the  doings  of  any  other,  but  also  because  its 
annual  deliberations  have  always  been  prior  to  those  of  the 
others,  so  that  its  official  documents  annually  date  first. 

As  to  the  organization  itself  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  we  must 
return  to  the  Ecclesiastical  Compact  formed  by  the  General  Con- 
vention in  1816.  Forced  to  take  this  step,  the  delegates  assem- 
bled from  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  Wilmington,  Del.,  Attle- 
borough,  Pa.,  and  Salem,  N.  J.  But  sixteen  names  have  been 
handed  down  to  us  as  participating  in  the  deliberations  of 
the  Convention.  The  names  in  the  following  list  were  given  by 
Bishop  Quinn  and  Brother  Jonathan  Tudas,  who  were  present 
but  not  participants,  as  previously  stated  : 

From  Baltimore: — Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  Rev.  Richard  Williams, 
Rev.  Henry  Harden,  Mr.  Edward  Williamson,  Mr.  Stephen  Hill, 
Mr.  Nicholas  Gilliard. 

From  Philadelphia  :— Rev.  Richard  Allen,  Rev.  Clayton 
Durham,  Rev.  Jacob  Tapsico,  Rev.  James  Champion,  Mr. 
Thomas  Webster. 

From  Wilmington,  Del.: — Rev.  Peter  Spencer. 
From  Attleborough,  Pa.: — Rev.  Jacob  Marsh,  Rev.  William 
Anderson,  Rev.  Edward  Jackson 
From  Salem,  N.  J.  : — Reuben  Cuff, 

The  men  most  distinguished  in  the  Convention,  were  Richard 

(13) 


14 


HiMory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Allen,  Daniel  Coker  and  Stephen  Hill;  and  to  the  counsels  and 
wisdom  of  the  last  named,  more  than  to  any  other  man,  the 
Church  was  indebted  for  the  form  it  took. 

The  most  important  thing  that  was  done  was,  of  course, 
the  organization  of  the  Connection.  The  speeches  which  were 
made  in  this  important  Convention  are  lost  to  the  Church  and 
to  posterity,  but  the  following  is  the  resolution  under  which  the 
Church  was  organized  : 

u  Boohed,  That  the  people  of  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  all  other  places, 
who  should  unite  with  them,  shall  become  one  body  under  the  name  and  style 
of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church," 

The  next  thing  of  importance  was  the  election  of  a  Bishop. 
The  votes  being  polled,  Rev.  Daniel  Coker  was  declared  the 
Bishop-elect  on  the  9th  of  April,  181b\  On  the  10th  he  resigned, 
or  rather,  declined  the  office,  and  Rev.  Richard  Allen  was  chosen 
in  his  stead,  and  was  therefore  consecrated  the  Bishop  of  the  A. 
M.  E.  Church  on  the  11th  of  April,  1816,  Cthe  next  important 
thing  done  was  to  make  it  constitutional  that  any  minister  com- 
ing from  another  denomination  should  be  received  in  the  same 
official  standing  which  he  held  in  the  Church  or  denomination 
whence  he  eame7  This  then  was  the  origin  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Poor  and  lowly,  an  outcast  and 
despised  of  men,  it  thus  feebly  entered  into  being;  but  with 
a  manifest  destiny  of  greatness  which  has  been  unmistakably 
developing  for  over  three  quarters  of  a  century. 

The  churches  in  the  city  of  Baltimore  were  planted  by  the 
Rev.  Daniel  Coker.  The  first  record  of  the  proceedings  of  this 
Conference  is  dated  April  7th,  1818 — the  first  documentary  evi- 
dence of  its  existence.  It  was  opened  in  the  house  of  Mr.  Samuel 
Williams— a  fine  two-story  building,  standing  in  1843 — in  Balti- 
more, under  the  presidency  of  Rev.  Richard  Allen.  The  minutes 
of  that  Conference  present  to  us  a  very  meager  number  of  repre- 
sentatives—Rev. Richard  Allen,  Rev.  Jacob  Tapsico  and 
Rev.  William  Cousins  being  the  representatives  of  the  Philadel- 
phia churches  ;  and  Rev.  Richard  Williams,  Rev.  Henry  Hardin, 
Charles  Pierce,  James  Fowsin,  Jerry  Miller,  William  Quinn  and 
Thomas  Robinson  representing  Baltimore.  These  were  after- 
wards joined  by  others  as  the  Conference  continued  its  sittings 
from  day  to  day. 


Organization  of  the  A,  M.  E.  Church. 


15 


The  first  transaction  we  find  taken  up  was  a  charge  brought 
by  Jamea  Cole  against  Daniel  Ooker.  Before  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  examine  tins  charge,  the  following  resolution 
was  passed : 

Resolved,  That  do  business  of  a  secret  nature  referred  to  a  committee  shall  l>e 
taken  out  of  the  Conference,  and  if  reported  out  of  the  Conference  by  any  mem- 
ber, they  shall  forfeit  all  their  official  functions  for  one  year,  and  shall  not  ob- 
tain their  license  until  they  give  proper  satisfaction  to  the  Annual  Conference. 

Why  this  resolution  was  necessary  we  have  no  means  of  know- 
ing at  this  late  day,  but  the  wisdom  of  such  a  proceeding  can 
hardly  be  doubted 

A  committtee  consisting  of  Jacob  Tapsico,  Richard  Williams 
and  Edward  Williamson  was  appointed  to  hear  the  report 
and  try  the  case.  This  committee  met  at  the  house  of  Don 
Carlos  Hall  on  the  8th,  and  on  the  10th  of  April  reported  to  the 
Conference  that  it  had  found  the  charge  proven  and  Daniel 
Coker  guilty.  In  the  meantime  another  committee  had  been 
appointed  to  examine  the  work  of  the  trial  committee  and,  after 
due  examination,  concurred  in  the  verdict  and  Daniel  Coker  was 
expelled  from  the  Connection.  Whatever  may  have  been  the 
sin  with  which  he  was  charged,  and  whatever  the  evidence 
produced  against  him,  the  whole  Conference  appears  to  have 
been  satisfied  of  the  justness  of  his  sentence.  Two  members  of 
the  Conference  do  not  appear  to  have  participated  in  the 
ease:  these  were  Bishop  Allen  and  Elder  William  Quinn. 

Daniel  Coker  had  shown  himself  to  be  eminently  useful,  and  to 
his  talents  and  activity  the  infant  Connection  was  largely 
indebted  for  the  progress  it  had  made.  On  that  account  the  two 
non-participants  deeply  sympathized  with  him  although  we  have 
no  record  of  that  sympathy  being  in  any  way  expressed.  In 
view  of  his  former  usefulness  to  the  Connection  and  the  dis- 
advantages under  which  it  might  have  to  labor  from  his  absence 
from  its  work  and  councils,  we  cannot  but  admire  the  stern 
resolve  of  this  body,  which  dispensed  with  all  the  advantages  it 
might  otherwise  receive,  in  order  to  carry  out  the  principles 
of  right  and  justice,  in  order  to  keep  itself  pure  and  free  from 
everything  which  might  militate  against  its  advancement  in  the 
cause  of  the  Lord ;  which  cut  off  every  one  who  by  any  course  of 
conduct  might  retard  that  work,  or  give  rise  to  offence,  no  matter 


16 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


what  the  cost  might  be.  It  would  be  well  if  this  course  were  fol- 
lowed more  at  the  present  day  and  less  attention  paid  to  expedi- 
ency than  to  right. 

This  Conference  decided  that  two  deacons  were  sufficient  to 
present  for  ordination  at  present  and  two  were  recommended  and 
ordained :  Charles  Pierce  and  Edward  Waters.  The  last  named 
was  admitted  at  this  time  as  a  regular  member  of  the  Annual 
Conference.  Richard  Williams  and  Henry  Harden  were  elected 
to  elder's  orders.  In  the  line  of  progress  Ave  find  it  unanimous- 
ly agreed  upon  to  lay  before  the  Society  the  building  of  a  Church 
on  the  Point,  and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  view  the  site  for 
the  purpose.  None  had  died  or  withdrawn,  and,  save  in  the  sad 
case  of  Daniel  Coker,  no  charges  were  preferred  against  any  of  the 
members.  There  were  1,066  members  in  the  Society  reported. 
The  services  of  the  Secretary  were  recognized  by  the  appro- 
priation of  five  dollars  to  pay  for  the  same.  This  was  as  it 
should  be.  We  have  already  seen  how  much  is  lost  to  the 
Church  by  the  neglect  of  the  General  Convention  of  1816,  in  not 
preserving  its  records. 

It  was  different  with  the  Conference  of  1818.  Here  we  find 
the  minutes  replete  with  the  details  of  every  transaction  entered 
into  ;  and  these  really  give  us  the  first  view  of  how  our  fathers 
carried  on  the  business  of  the  different  things  committed  to  their 
charge.  These  minutes  are  written  in  a  careful,  clear  hand  and 
although  the  work  of  a  mere  lad,  they  show  a  striking  adaptabili- 
ty for  the  work.  The  penmanship  is  that  of  Richard  Allen, 
Junior,  son  of  Bishop  Allen.  He  was  neither  a  member  of  the 
Annual  Conference  nor  a  member  of  the  Church,  if  we  are  right- 
ly informed.  It  is  supposed  that  he  was  employed  as  the  Secre- 
tary, because  he  was  the  best  scholar  that  the  Conference  could 
obtain.  He  was  then  about  fifteen  years  of  age.  Bishop  Allen 
and  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conferences  of  1818  and  1819  (for  the 
lad  was  made  Secretary  of  both)  exhibited  a  degree  of  common 
sense  and  sound  judgment  which  many  of  the  Conferences  and 
leading  men  of  our  times  will  do  well  to  consider  and  imitate. 
Better  have  a  boy  who  can  do  a  thing  as  it  ought  to  be  done, 
than  a  man  who  cannot. 

This  was  the  first  characteristic  of  this  Conference,  and  the  sec- 
ond was  the  election  of  a  Book  Steward.     In  this  the  members 


Organization  of  the  A.  M.  K.  Chv/rck. 


17 


"  budded  better  than  they  knew,"  and  laid  the  foundation  of  an 
institution,  which  since  thai  time  lias  continued  to  grow  in 
power  and  influence.  Possibly  no  man  in  the  Conference  bad 
any  conception  of  what  he  was  doing  to  promote  the  influence 
and  power  of  the  Church,  when  he  voted  for  the  simple  resolu- 
tions that  a  book  steward  be  appointed  and  that  Don  Carlos 
Hall  receive  the  appointment. 

In  this  selection  also  there  was  wisdom.  This  Don  Carlos 
Hall,  who  Was  promoted  by  the  Annual  Conference  to  this  office, 
was  not  a  traveling  preacher  nor  a  local  preacher,  but  an  intelli- 
gent layman.  He  was  appointed  because  he  was  best  qualified, 
and  this  selection  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  demonstrated  the 
soundness  of  their  judgment.  It  will  be  wise  for  the  Annual 
Conferences  of  the  present  hour  to  follow  so  good  an  example. 
Where  there  cannot  be  found  an  itinerant  preacher  qualified  to 
fill  an  office  involving  labor  of  such  a  character,  let  a  local 
preacher  possessing  the  needed  qualifications  be  employed ;  and 
when  neither  itinerant  nor  local  preacher  is  competent,  let  a  lay- 
man be  placed  in  the  position.  Indeed,  the  more  we  employ  lay- 
men to  fill  such  positions,  the  better  for  the  entire  Church.  'At 
the  same  time  Henry  Harden  was  appointed  book  steward  for 
the  circuit. 

The  good  resulting  from  having  printed  minutes  for  reference 
moved  the  Conference,  for  it  almost  unanimously  decided  to 
print  one  thousand  copies,  the  work  being  left  in  the  general 
superintendent's  hands  and  to  be  performed  in  Philadelphia,  the 
Conference  providing  for  his  expenses. 

We  find  that  three — Richard  Williams,  Henry  Harden  and 
Charles  Pierce — were  nominated  to  go  to  the  Philadelphia  Confer- 
ence, with  an  appropriation  of  fifteen  dollars  each  for  their 
expenses.  They  were  exact — these  fathers  in  the  early  Church, 
for  even  a  small  sum  was  paid  for  the  use  of  the  room  in  which 
the  Conference  carried  on  its  deliberations,  though  it  was  in 
a  private  house ;  and  they  were  careful  as  well,  for  we  find  direc- 
tions for  providing  a  trunk  for  the  Conference  papers.  At  this 
Conference  Bethel  Church  was  separated  from  the  circuit  and 
made  a  separate  charge.  The. financial  condition  of  the  Confer- 
ence was  not  very  strong,  although  apparently  it  had  the  balance 
on  the  right  side,  as  the  total  receipts  were  $437.90  and  the  ex- 
2 


18 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


penditures,  including  everything,  $344.05.  After  resolving  that 
the  next  Conference,  that  of  1819,  be  held  in  Baltimore,  the  Con- 
ference of  1818  adjourned  April  14th. 

Two  things  characterize  this  Conference.  First,  it  is  the  first 
Conference  of  which  we  have  any  record.  The  meeting  in  1816, 
although  of  the  utmost  importance  in  the  history  of  the  Church, 
left  no  records  behind  it  in  a  tangible  form.  The  whole  of  the 
evidence  of  its  existence,  apart  from  the  fact  that  the  independ- 
ent churches  there  united  to  form  the  A.  M.  E.  *Church,  is 
wholly  dependent  upon  statements  made  verbally.  It  is  true  the 
witnesses  are  reliable  men;  but  at  best,  all  are  liable  to  error.  If 
any  Conference  was  held  in  1817,  no  knowledge  of  it  whatever  is 
obtainable.  It  is  probable  some  meeting  or  Conference  was  held, 
but  of  what  may  have  been  said  or  done  we  have  no  means 
of  knowing.  The  important  characteristic  we  have  already  em- 
phasized— the  beginning  of  what  has  since  proved  to  be  one 
of  the  most  important  offices  of  the  Connection — the  office  of 
book  steward  and  the  wisdom  of  the  choice  of  Don  Carlos  Hall, 
which  future  events  fully  verified. 


CHAPTER  V. 


BALTIMORE  CONFERENCES,  1820-21-22. 


Conference  of  1820-Twenty-one  Members  Present— Their  Names- Con- 
ference of  1821— Local  Preachers  Admitted  to  Seats  in  Annual  Con- 
ference—A  General  Rule  Adopted—  Conference  of  1822—  Bifdiop  Allen 
Makes  an  Address — A  Long  Debate  in  Reference  to  Western  Terri- 
tory—An Assistant  Bishop  Elected. 

'T^HE  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  1818  opened  with  ten 


J[    members,  -one  of  whom  were  from  the  Philadelphia  Dis- 
trict.   The  Conference  of  1820,  about  which  we  are  now  to 
write,  opened  with  twenty-one  members,  showing  an  increase  of 
eleven,  some  of  whom,  as  in  the  first  instance,  were  also  from 
Philadelphia.    The  names  of  the  men  were  as  follows: 

Rev.  Richard  Allen,  John  Foulks, 

"     Jacob  Matthews.  James  Cole, 

"    Jacob  Richardson.  Jacob  Pierceson, 

"    David  Smith,  James  Carr, 

"     Edward  Water-.  William  Tilman, 


Rev.  Jacob  Matthews  acted  as  secretary. 

Again  the  reader  is  asked  not  to  forget  that  Mr.  Don  C.  Hall, 
marked  here  and  mentioned  as  steward,  and  who  had  distin- 
guished himself  in  all  the  preceding  Conferences,  was  not  a  cler- 
gyman, but  yet  he  participated  in  all  the  business  of  the  Confer- 
ence, moving  resolutions  and  voting  for  them — in  a  word, 
leading  on  the  affairs  of  the  Church,  and  giving  character  to 
them.  The  Conference  of  this  year  was  held  at  his  house,  a 
private  dwelling.  Such  also  was  the  case  with  the  first  session, 
in  1818.  It  was  held  in  a  private  dwelling,  that  of  Mr.  Samuel 
Williams,  while  that  of  1819  was  in  the  sanctuary. 

Two  persons  were  admitted  on  trial,  John  White  and  Joseph 
Chane;  James  Cole  was  ordained  a  deacon;  David  Smith, 
Charles  Pierce,  and  Edward  Waters  were  ordained  ciders. 


Charles  Pierce, 


John  White, 
James  Chace, 
Shadrack  Bassett, 
Joseph  Chane, 


James  Towson, 
Abner  Coker, 
Jacob  Roberts, 


Don  C.  Hall.  Steward. 


(  19) 


20 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Henry  Hardin  and  David  Smith  were  paid  by  the  steward  of 
the  Annual  Conference  twenty-four  dollars  for  their  expenses  to 
the  Philadelphia  Conference;  * 

While  there  was  little  or  no  business  of  particular  interest  to 
us,  aside  from  learning  that  the  number  in  Society  was  1,202, 
we  find  in  two  instances  how  utterly  futile  were  the  "  Ways  and 
Means"*  adopted  by  the  Conference  of  1819  to  prevent  the 
dreaded  "  discord,  schisms,  tattling  and  tale-hearing.*' 

The  next  year  (1821)  the  Conference  met  as  usual  in  the  same 
city,  and  was  opened  on  the  14th  of  April,  in  the  church  located 
in  Saratoga  street,  near  Gay.  Bishop  Allen  was  in  the  chair. 
There  were  several  things  done  at  this  Conference  worthy  of 
note.  Boundaries  were  enlarged,  and  business  of  importance 
dispatched. 

The  eastern  shore  of  Maryland  was  incorporated  in  the  hounds 
of  the  Baltimore  Conference  under  a  motion  made  by  Rev.  Jacob 
Mathews,  and  placed  under  the  charge  of  the  Elder  in  Baltimore. 
The  local  preachers  were  formally  admitted  to  seats  in  the  Annu- 
al Conference.  This  was  hrought  about  by  the  motion  of  Broth- 
ers  Harden  and  Webster.  But.  by  motion  of  Rev.  David  Smith 
and  the  said  Brother  Harden,  they  were  to  be  deprived  of  a 
"voice  in  the  Conference  against  any  one  of  the  traveling 
preachers,"  except  "in  case  of  a  trial,"  and  then  "only  as  wit- 
nesses." A  "General  Rule'"  was  adopted  for  the  government  of 
all  the  churches.  This  Rule,  it  seems,  had  been  drawn  up  in 
the  city  of  Philadelphia,  on  the  9th  of  July,  1820.  at  the  First 
General  Conference  then  in  session,  and  the  Second  in  order  of 
time;  hut  to  this  fact  no  allusion  was  made  by  the  Baltimorean.s. 
This  "General  Rule"  was  first  ratified  by  the  Baltimoreans,  and 
then  adopted  for  "  government  of  all  the  churches."  This  fact 
indicates  the  false  views  which  the  members  of  the  General  Con- 
ference entertained  concerning  their  power  as  a  General  Confer- 
ence. This  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  had  not  only  fixed 
the  place  of  the  meeting  of  the  general  Conference,  hut  doubtless 
did  send  representatives  to  attend  it;  for  in  those  days  all  trav- 
eling preachers  were  members  of  the  General  Conference.  But 

*  The  Conference  minutes  show  that  Richard  Allen,  Jr.  is  no  longer  the 
secretary  of  the  Annual  Conference.  Rev.  Jacob  Mathews  fills  the  office. 
As  in  the  case  of  young  Allen,  he  is  brought  from  Philadelphia;  but, 
although  a  man,  as  secretary  be  is  not  the  equal  of  young  Allen,  in  either 
writing  or  recording. 


Baltimore  Conference*^  1S20-21-22. 


21 


we  arc  not  informed  as  to  the  nature  of  it,  and  as  there  arc  no 
minutes  of  that  Philadelphia  Conference,  they  having  shared 
the  fate,  if  they  existed,  of  the  other  minutes  of  the  Philadel- 
phia Annual  Conference,  we  are  left  in  ignorance  of  its  character 
and  design. 

Exhorters  to  the  number  of  seven  were  licensed  by  this 
Annual  Conference.  Then  there  was  a  motion  that  it  was 
resolved  that  " the  Rule  for  raising  moneys  for  the  support  of 
the  Gospel  be  enforced." 

There  seemed  to  have  been  a  spirit  of  insubordination  mani- 
fested among  the  local  ministry,  who  were  therefore  required  by 
vote  to  pledge  themselves  anew  to  "  be  in  subjection  to  the  Dis- 
cipline of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church." 

The  number  of  members  in  the  bounds  of  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference had  increased  to  1,760,  Carlisle  being  the  weakest  point, 
with  a  membership  of  fifteen,  while  Baltimore  City  reached  525, 
with  Caroline  County,  of  recent  addition  to  the  work,  following 
next  with  192. 

One  year  later  (1822),  less  two  days  from  the  opening  of  this  Con- 
ference, the  body  convened  again,  upon  the  12th  of  April.  Bish- 
op Allen  addressed  the  Conference  with  special  reference  to  two 
points  always  worthy  of  emulation — love,  peace,  vand  harmony 
among  the  ministry,  and  the  necessity  of  conducting  the  busi- 
ness of  the  Conference  in  the  fear  of  God. 

The  work  was  increasing,  and  there  was  a  consequent  increase 
in  the  importance  of  the  business  to  be  transacted.  Charles 
Guy,  Peter  D.  Schureman,  and  Jeremiah  Beulah  were  received 
on  trial  in  the  traveling  connection,  while  Marcus  Brown,  Amos 
Crookshanks,  and  Richard  Boone  were  elected ato  receive  orders 
as  deacons,  the  work  demanding  more  than  two. 

A  long  and  serious  debate  arose  in  this  Conference  relative  to 
the  Western  Territories  and  the  Conference  under  whose  juris- 
diction they  should  be  placed.  It  was  vast  enough  as  a  district 
— these  Territories — for  the  record  refers  to  it  as  "  the  country 
west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains,"  and  after  consideration  a 
former  rule  respecting  it  was  repealed,  and  it  was  determined 
that  the  supervision  should  belong  to  the  Philadelphia  Conference 
until  it  was  proper  to  set  it  off  into  an  independent  district. 

Again  the  borders  were  enlarged  in  another  direction  through 
a  petition  received  from  Washington,  Georgetown,  and  Piscata- 


22 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Cfourch. 


way.  requesting  to  be  admitted  into  union  with  the  African 
M.  E.  Church,  which  petition  was  unanimously  granted. 

The  Church  had  so  increased  in  its  six  years  of  existence  that 
it  was  thought  beet  to  have  an  assistant  to  the  Bishop.  The 
Baltimore  Conference  took  the  matter  in  hand  now,  as  we  see  in 
its  motion  to  create  a  committee  of  three  traveling  preachers  to 
nominate  two  or  three  candidates  for  that  position.  The  com- 
mittee consisted  of  Jacob  Richardson.  William  Quinn.  and 
Thomas  Webster.  The  election  of  the  candidates  was  to  be 
managed  in  the  following  manner  according  to  the  journal  of  that 
date : 

It  was  moved  by  Jacob  Matthews,  and  seconded  by  Abner  Coker,  that 
Don  Carlos  Hall  be  appointed  as  a  judge  with  the  Bishop  in  time  of  elec- 
tion. It  was  put  to  vote,  and  carried,  that  the  person  that  should  be  elected 
for  an  assistant  to  the  General  Superintendent  should  be  voted  for  by 
private  election,  and  the  name  of  the  person  that  should  gain  the  election 
should  be  sealed  up,  and  for  to  be  kept  in  secret  until  after  the  Conference 
in  Philadelphia  has  given  in  their  vote,  and,  according  to  the  Bishop's 
proposal,  for  him  then  to  be  set  apart,  if  the  two  Conferences,  Baltimore 
and  Philadelphia,  wished  for  it  to  be  done,  voted,  and  carried. 

It  is  a  curious  paper,  showing  a  very  awkward  and  contradic- 
tory movement,  at  least,  in  the  step  toward  making  a  second 
Bishop:  but  it  was  a  first  experience,  in  which  two  Conferences 
instead  of  one  were  concerned,  and  the  authority  vested  in  each 
body  does  not  seem  to  be  very  clearly  understood,  stated.  >r 
acted  upon. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  was  not  then  in  session,  but  in 
the  election  held  in  Baltimore.  Morris  Brown.  Henry  Harden, 
and  Jacob  Matthews  were  candidates,  and  the  vote  stood:  Mor- 
ris Brown.  7:  Jacob  Matthews.  9;  Henry  Harden.  4.  The 
following  month  the  Philadelphia  Conference  convened  the 
20th  of  May.  and  we  find  the  same  three  again  as  candidates 
for  general  superintendent,  with  the  following  result :  Morris 
Brown,  9;  Jacob  Matthews.  15:  Henry  Harden.  9.  The  total 
vote  stood:  Morris  Brown.  16:  Jacob  Matthews.  24:  Henry 
Harden.  13. 

For  the  first  time  Bishop  Allen's  name  appears  at  the  end  of 
the  Baltimore  proceedings,  and  also  in  attestation  of  the  genu- 
ineness of  the  electoral  votes  cast,  both  in  Baltimore  and  Phila- 
delphia, for  the  episcopal  assistant.  The  character  and  constitu- 
tionality of  this  election  will  be  examined  at  another  point.  In 


Baltimore  Conference*,  1820-21-22. 


thifi  instance  we  have  an  evidence  that  election  to  the  episcopal 
office  does  not  constitute  any  person  a  Bishop.  "The  laying  on 
of  hands"  must  follow  election  in  order  that  the  individual  may 
be  a  veritable  Bishop. 

At  the  Baltimore  Conference  the  question  was  asked  whether 
the  local  preachers  should  have  a  vote  for  these  candidates  set 
apart  lor  the  general  superintendent.  The  answer  was  in  the 
affirmative,  and  this  answer  was  given  in  the  form  of  a  vote. 
There  seems  to  have  heen  some  doubt  about  the  employment  of 
Shadrack  Bassett  as  a  traveling  preacher,  in  view  of  the  circum- 
stance  that  having  been  a  slave  he  had  petitioned  for  his  freedom, 
and  having  been  delivered  by  the  courts  from  the  claims  of  one 
slave-holder,  it  was  feared  he  might  be  subject  to  the  claims  of 
another,  wherefore  Brother  Abner  Coker  was  appointed  a  com- 
mittee to  consult  an  attorney,  from  whom  the  Conference 
received  the  following  instrument: 

Judgment  in  case  of  a  petition  for  freedom  is  not  judgment  against  the 
whole  world,  but  only  against  the  individual  against  whom  it  is  filed,  so 
that  if  a  petitioner  should  succeed  in  being  discharged  from  slavery  to  an 
individual  who  illegally  claimed  him,  he  would  still  be  liable  to  be  seized 
by  his  proper  owner.  The  only  point  gained  by  Shadrack  Bassett,  if  he 
sues  in  case  against  Hackney,  will  be  that  he  can  make  use  of  the  judgment 
of  freedom  against  Hackney  as  a  security  against  future  molestation,  as  it 
is  probable  that  no  one  would  hold  him  after  he  had  produced  such  a 
judgment.  It  is  ray  opinion  that  the  Conference  of  Colored  People 
incur  no  risk  in  sending  Shadrack  Bassett  forth  to  preach  the  Gospel,  pro- 
vided he  does  not  go  south  of  the  State  of  Maryland. 
[Signed.]  John  Tyson,  Attorney. 

All  these  documents  are  matters  of  history,  and  this  is  but 
one  of  many  which  might  be  brought  forward  to  these  pages  for 
the  eyes  of  the  present  and  future  generations — the  present 
viewing  them  with  mingled  feelings  of  indignation,  shame,  and 
regret;  the  future  commingling  with  these,  astonishment  and 
curiosity. 

All  that  is  of  other  generations  teaches  us  closely — a  proof  of 
the  unity  of  the  races.  All  that  is  of  each  race  inspires  that 
race,  or  casts  it  down  according  to  its  character ;  therefore,  all 
that  these  early  journals  record  of  the  beginnings  of  our  Church 
— the  trials  and  triumphs,  the  failures  and  successes,  the  striv- 
ings and  achievements — moves  us  to  close  sympathy  and  impels 
us  to  greater  deeds. 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Our  fathers  in  African  Methodism  wrought  wisely  and  well 
for  their  day  and  generation,  and  the  documents  we  gather  are 
indicative  of  the  force  which  has  spread  African  Methodism  far 
and  wide,  and  from  which  we  learn  of  the  spirit  and  manner  of 
the  men  who  were  leaders  then. 

As  an  Appendix  to  the  Minutes  of  the  Baltimore  Annual 
(  unference  the  following  document  is  recorded,  and  in  further- 
ance of  the  above  idea,  we  insert  it  here : 

It  was  moved,  seconded,  and  carried  that  all  the  local  elders,  deacons, 
and  preachers  shall  have  a  seat  in  the  Annual  Conferences,  provided 
that  they  stand  fair,  and  be  in  subjection  to  the  elder  in  charge  in  receiv- 
ing appointments  and  filling  up  all  such  appointments  that  may  be  given 
to  them  from  time  to  time  by  the  elder  in  charge  ;  provided  that  the 
elder  does  not  infringe  too  much  on  his  temporal  affairs;  and  in  case  of 
any  of  the  local  preachers  should  be  called  upon  to  fill  up  any  extra  ap- 
pointments, then  the  minister  in  charge  shall  see  that  the  said  preacher  or 
preachers  shall  receive  such  aid  from  the  Society  as  is  allowed  to  local 
preachers  in  such  cases  in  referring  to  that  discipline  that  we  have  recourse 
to  in  all  giving  cases  in  our  ministry  or  state.  If  the  above  rules  should 
he  ratified  by  the  Annual  Conference,  then,  if  any  of  the  preachers,  aftei 
receiving  appointments  from  the  elder,  should  refuse  for  to  go  and  fill  up 
his  appointments,  without  a  sufficient  excuse,  shall,  for  the  first  neglect, 
he  be  reproved  by  the  elder,  and  also,  if  he  should  neglect  the  second 
time,  without  a  lawful  excuse,  then  the  elder  may,  if  tie  think  proper, 
summons  that  preacher  before  a  committee,  and  if  he  gives  no  proper 
satisfaction  for  his  neglecting  his  duty,  then  the  elder,  with  the  committee, 
shall  silence  him  until  the  Quarterly  Meeting  Conference,  and  his  case 
shall  be  referred  to  the  Annual  Conference  for  trial  and  decision. 

Done  in  the  Philadelphia  Conference  for  the  whole  Connection  in 
General.  Signed  by  the  Superintendent, 

Secretary  pro  tern.,  Richard  Allex. 

Jacob  Matthews. 

The  two  points  in  this  document  show  the  men  of  our  times: 
First, — The  Quarterly  Conference  had  no  jurisdiction  over  the 
case  of  the  delinquent  local  preacher,  beyond  a  mere  hearing  of 
the  statement  and  reference  of  the  question  to  the  Annual  Con- 
ference, which  alone  could  try  and  pass  judgment  on  him. 

Second. — The  Philadelphia  Conference  was. by  this  extraordi- 
nary document  invested  with  the  power  of  the  General  Confer- 
ence. 

Again,  the  report  of  members  from  the  various  churches  under 
the  Baltimore  jurisdiction  shows  an  increase  of  1,938.  The 
Eastern  Shore  work,  so  recently  added,  gives  330  of  that  num- 


Baltimore  <  'onferences,  1  <S2()-2 1  -22. 


her.  It  is  wise  to  make  an  assistant  to  the  Bishop,  in  view  of 
this  and  the  nearly  parallel  increase  in  the  Philadelphia  District. 
This  year  Jacob  Matthews  is  sent  to  Baltimore  City;  David 
Smith  to  Washington  and  Georgetown;  Peter  Schureman  is 
placed  in  charge  of  Piscataway  Circuit,  while  Thomas  Webster, 
Jacob  Richardson,  Joshua  Early,  and  Jeremiah  Beulah  are 
sent  on  the  more  scattered  work  of  the  Harrisburgh  Circuit. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


EARLY  CONFERENCE  SESSIONS. 

Morris  Brown  Admitted  into  Full  Connection — Three  Founders  Elected 
Deacons — Stronghold  of  African  Methodism  in  Philadelphia — Enlarging 
the  Borders — Statistics  of  Membership — Philadelphia  Conference  Invested 
with  the  Power  of  a  General  Conference — An  Increase  in  Numbers. 

THE  Baltimore  Conference  preceded  that  in  Philadelphia  by 
a  little  more  than  a  month.  As  has  been  said  of  the  former, 
SO  it  can  be  said  of  the  latter  :  if  any  Conference  was  held  in  1817, 
we  are  unable  to  find  any  trace  of  the  fact.  May  9th,  1818,  the 
Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  met  in  Philadelphia,  at  the  house  of  Richard  Allen, 
and  opened  at  11  o'clock  a.  m.  with  singing  and  prayer.  In  the 
course  of  the  session  nearly  all  the  names  of  the  founders,  as  rep- 
resented by  the  list  of  1816,  were  upon  the  record.  Five  preachers 
were  admitted  on  trial ;  six  members  were  admitted  into  full 
connection,  among  them  Morris  Brown.  Three  of  the  founders, 
Henry  Drayton,  Edward  Jackson  and  Reuben  Cuff,  were  elected 
to  deacon's  orders,  while  Morris  Brown,  with  two  other  of  the 
founders,  James  Champion  and  Jacob  Tapsico,  wrere  elected  and 
ordained  elders.  One  death  is  recorded:  "Joseph  Lea,  a  man  of 
God,  who  has  labored  for  many  years  in  the  ministry,  during 
which  time  he  supported  the  character  of  a  Christian  and  a  faith- 
ful minister,  a  kind  and  loving  husband  and  a  tender  father." 
There  seems  to  have  been  no  particular  business  of  importance 
transacted  at  this  meeting.  We  find  on  the  third  day  of  the 
session  that  Thomas  Banks,  president  and  trustee  of  the  Snow 
Hill  church  corporation  applies  to  the  Bishop  and  Conference  to 
take  charge  of  the  spiritual  concerns  of  their  church  and  congre- 
gation, which  request  is  unanimously  granted,  with  the  promise 
to  supply  them  with  preaching  as  often  as  they  can  make  it 
convenient.  The  first  detailed  report  of  the  members  in  the 
Society  were  given  at  this  meeting,  and  we  find  sixteen  places 
represented:  Philadelphia,  3,311  ;  Baltimore,  1,066;  Salem,  N.  J., 
110  ;  Trenton,  73;  Princeton,  33;  Snow  Hill,  56 ;  Woodbury,  29; 
Attleborough,  41 ;  New  Hope,  33;  Frankfort,  28;  Westchester,  46; 
(26) 


Early  Conference  Sessions. 


Plemeth,  8;  Whitemarsh,  29;  Bridgeport,  6;  Brunswick,  40; 
Charleston,  1,848;  making  a  total  of  (>,748.  It  is  seen  by  this 
that  the  stronghold  of  African  Methodism  was  in  Philadelphia, 
with  Charleston  next  in  order.  On  May  20th  the  Conference 
adjourned  to  meet  again  in  Philadelphia,  the  date  not  being 
stated.  And  here  we  may  say  there  is  an  hiatus;  for  the  next 
proceedings,  of  whieh  we  have  any  knowledge  or  record,  are 
dated  in  1822.  Not  until  that  date  have  we  any  Church  records 
to  run  parallel  with  those  of  Baltimore,  whieh  were  continued 
yearly  from  1818. 

On  the  19th  of  April,  1819,  the  Annual  Conference  for  the 
Baltimore  District  was  opened  at  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  Saratoga 
street.  The  members  present  were  from  Philadelphia,  Balti- 
more, and  Charleston,  S.  C,  and  were  as  follows  at  the  opening 
of  the  session : 

Rev.  Richard  Allen,  William  Cousins, 


The  first  duty  of  the  Conference  was  to  appoint  a  doorkeeper, 
whose  instructions  were  to  admit  no  one  without  the  leave  of 
the  chair.  A  resolution  was  also  passed  that  no  member  of  the 
Conference  should  leave  the  room  without  the  permission  of  the 
chair;  while  still  another  resolution,  tending  toward  the  secrecy 
and  safety  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Conference,  was  one  by 
Don  C.  Hall,  to  the  effect  that  the  steward  shall  not  present  or 
show  the  books  or  papers  of  the  Annual  Conference  to  any  per- 
son or  persons  without  the  permission  of  the  superintendent. 
These  were  all  directed  to  the  end  that  the  business  should  be 
properly  and  rapidly  done.  There  appears  to  have  been  some 
letters  addressed  to  the  official  members  in  Philadelphia  which 
had  been  detained  by  the  secretary  for  some  reasons,  and  handed 
to  the  Bishop  upon  his  arrival  in  Baltimore.  We  do  not  know 
what  these  letters  contained,  for,  although  a  motion  was  made 


Richard  Williams, 
Henry  Harden, 
Morris  Brown, 
Jerry  Miller, 
Joseph  Cox, 


James  Towsen, 
Charles  Pierce, 
Edward  Waters 
James  Cole, 
David  Smith, 
Thomas  Hall, 
Abner  Coker, 


"    Jacob  Richardson, 


Don  Carlos  Hall. 


William  Quinn. 


2s 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


that  they  should  he  read  to  the  Conference,  there  is  no  record 
of  this  having  been  done.  Probably,  however,  the  contents  of 
those  letters  caused  Henry  Harden  to  place  his  resolution  before 
the  Conference,  "that  no  minister  or  preacher  belonging  to  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Conference,  or  any  member,  local 
or  traveling,  shall  write  any  letter  or  letters  or  communications, 
vei  l  tally,  or  by  any  other  way  whatsoever,  that  will  have  the 
bearance  of  raising  discord  or  hardness  in  the  Connection,"  as 
well  as  another  to  the  effect  "that  ways  and  means  shall  be 
entered  into  by  the  Conference  to  prevent  any  member  or  mem- 
bers of  the  Annual  Conference  of  taking  a  part  with  any  person 
or  persons  evading  the  Discipline  of  the  said  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  or  Churches;  or  shall  be  found  guilty  of  sow- 
ing discord,  or  raising  schisms,  tattling  or  tale-bearing,  so  that 
the  Church  or  society  may  Buffer  injury  by  the  strife  of  such 
person  or  persons,  the  Elder  shall  call  him  or  them  to  trial;  if 
found  guilty,  the  Elder  shall  silence  him  or  them  until  the  set- 
ting of  the  Annual  Conference,  then  the  Elder  shall  deliver  the 
charge  to  the  Conference,  in  writing,  and  the  Conference  shall 
deal  with  the  said  offender  according  to  Discipline."  At  this 
Conference  Daniel  Coker,  who  had  been  expelled  in  the  year 
1818,  made  application  to  be  reinstated  in  the  position  which  he 
had  formerly  held.  A  committee  having  been  appointed  to  take 
into  consideration  the  reinstating  of  Daniel  Coker,  reported  as 
follow.-  : 

Baltimore,  April  27,  1819. 
We,  the  Committee  appointed  by  the  Annual  Conference  on  22d  inst., 
to  take  into  consideration  the  case  of  Brother  Daniel  Coker,  deem  it  necessary 
for  to  receive  him  into  Society,  and  he  be  in  subjection  to  the  Elder  sta- 
tioned in  the  District,  and  when  they  see  proper,  shall  be  admitted  to  the 
pulpit  at  their  discretion ;  but  he  shall  not  fulfill  the  office  of  a  deacon 
until  the  Annual  Conference  restores  him  to  fill  those  offices. 
Committee  : 

Joseph  Cox, 
Rev.  Morris  Browne, 
Rev.  Richard  Williams, 
Jeremiah  Miller, 

Rich'd  Allen,  Jr.,  Secretary. 

Henry  Fox  and  Jacob  Roberts  were  admitted  as  members  of 
the  Conference,  while  the  former  and  David  Smith  were  ap- 
pointed Deacons.  At  this  time  we  find  the  Conference  enlarging 
the  borders  of  the  Church.    First,  by  the  addition  of  French- 


\  Daniel  Coker. 


Early  Conference  Sessions, 


29 


town,  which  was  taken  into  the  district  of  Baltimore,  and  next, 
by  the  addition  of  Caroline  County,  which  was  also  placed  under 
the  charge  of  the  Baltimore  Conference,  with  Charles  Pierce  in 
charge.  In  the  appointment  of  Charles  Pierce  to  the  charge  of 
the  Circuit  we  find  a  remarkable  departure  from  the  established 
usage.  No  expense  was  incurred  in  the  admission  of  Caroline 
County,  or,  as  it  was  afterwards  called,  Harrishurg  Circuit,  as 
that  was  to  be  borne  by  the  Society  in  that  Circuit.  The  statis- 
tics of  membership  in  1819  show  an  increase  of  over  BOO  above 
those  of  1818,  there  being  an  aggregate  within  the  Conference 
limits  of  1,388.  The  next  Annual  Conference  was  appointed  to 
be  held  in  Baltimore,  and  the  General  Conference  of  1820  was 
appointed  to  meet  in  Philadelphia.  There  are  several  things  in 
this  Conference  which  are  worthy  of  remark. 

First:  Frenchtown  was  added  to  the  field  of  labor  this  year;  so 
was  Caroline  County,  afterwards  named  Harrisburgh  Circuit. 

Second:  An  appointment  for  the  labors  of  an  itinerant  preach- 
er on  a  whole  Circuit  was  made  by  the  members  of  the  Annual 
Conference  during  the  session  of  said  Conference,  and  that  be- 
fore the  Bishop's  face,  while  the  man  who  seconded  the  motion 
to  that  effect  was  a  layman,  viz.,  Don  Carlos  Hall,  the  Conference 
book  steward. 

Third :  The  preacher  was  sent,  or  rather  appointed  to  the  Cir- 
cuit before  that  Circuit  was  taken  into  the  Connection. 

Fourth  :  The  Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  after  being  expelled  for  one 
whole  year,  was  restored  to  the  Church,  not  on  probation,  but  in 
full  fellowship,  and  in  the  exercise  of  his  functions  as  a  minister 
of  the  Gospel,  the  exercise  of  the  deaconate  excepted.  And  yet 
he  was  allowed  to  occupy  the  pulpit  only  by  permission  of  the 
elder  in  charge — that  is  to  say,  at  his  discretion.  We  also  do 
well  to  consider  the  fact  that  no  elder,  no  church  action  of  an 
elder,  is  allowed  to  intervene  the  action  of  the  Annual  Confer- 
ence that  expelled  Mr.  Coker,  as  more  merciful  and  tolerant  lead- 
ers may  now  do;  but  the  same  power  that  expelled  is  the  power 
that  restores. 

In  our  judgment  this  example  is  worthy  of  imitation,  for  it 
has  too  often  happened  that,  after  having  been  convicted  by  the 
Annual  Conference,  one  has  been  allowed  to  unite  with  some 
local  church,  and  then  was  restored  to  full  standing  by  that  church 
before  the  lapse  of  a  single  year.    We  are  more  enlightened  than 


30 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


were  the  founders  of  the  Connection,  but  are  we  as  moral  ?  Have 
we  as  high  sense  of  personal  and  official  character  as  they  ? 

Fifth:  The  stringency  of  the  resolution  against  a  discordant 
spirit  evinced  the  strength  of  their  hatred  against  it. 

Sixth:  The  Second  General  Conference  was  appointed  and 
held  in  Philadelphia  by  a  vote  of  the  Baltimore  Conference. 

Seventh :  The  vain  efforts  of  the  Annual  Conference  to  pre- 
vent discontented  and  insubordinate  spirits  from  "taking  a  part 
with  any  person  or  persons"  who  might  be  disposed  to  inveigh 
against  the  Discipline,  or  " sowing  discord,"  or  "raising  schisms," 
or  "  tale-bearing." 

As  long  as  there  is  a  devil  to  disturb  the  peace,  harmony,  and 
love  of  the  Church,  or  to  destroy  its  unity,  just  so  long  will  evil- 
minded  persons  be  found  to  carry  out  their  infernal  purposes. 
And  what  is  the  most  perplexing  as  well  as  lamentable  feature 
of  all  church  troubles  is  the  impossibility  of  making  such  per- 
sons see  that  they  are  Satanic  agents. 

We  do  well  to  censure  every  attempt  to  produce  schism  and  to 
resist  the  good  government  of  the  Church,  not  so  much  by  pass- 
ing resolutions  to  prevent  such  evils,  as  by  cultivating  the  spirit 
of  Christian  forbearance,  confidence  and  love. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


EXTINCTION  OF  THE  CHURCH  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

Episcopal  Support  — Rise  of  African  Methodism  in  the  City  of  New  York — 
New  York  and  Brooklyn  Churches  Incorporated  with  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  1820— Societies  outside  of  New  York— Manner  of  Electing 
Delegates  to  General  Conference — Finances  of  the  Second  General  Con- 
ference—The Slaveholders'  Fear  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

UP  to  this  period  (1822),  with  the  one  exception  of  the  Phil- 
adelphia Annual  Conference  of  1818,  we  have  devoted  our 
entire  attention  and  space  to  the  doings  of  the  Baltimore  Annual 
Conferences.  The  reason  for  so  doing  is  this:  No  manuscript, 
no  printed  traces,  no  signs  whatever  can  be  found  of  the  sayings 
and  doings  of  the  Philadelphia  Conferences  other  than  those  of 
1818,  up  to  the  year  1822.  That  some  must  have  existed  at 
some  period  is  positive,  as  is  gathered  from  the  resolutions  of  the 
Baltimore  Conferences  during  this  time,  where  mention  is  made 
of  these  meetings,  but  what  eventually  became  of  the  journal, 
minutes,  or  other  documents,  is  not  known. 

In  1822,  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  begins  to  run  in 
a  parallel  line  with  that  of  Baltimore,  and  for  this  year  we  have 
both  the  manuscript  journal  and  the  printed  minutes  of  the 
session  which  opened  in  Philadelphia,  May  9.  The  resolutions 
passed  at  this  Conference  were  comparatively  few,  and  the  gen- 
eral business  in  most  cases  unimportant.  Bishop  Allen  presided, 
and  the  preachers  admitted  on  trial  were  Joshua  P.  B.  Eddy, 
George  Bowler,  and  Noah  Cannon.  Charles  Butler  was  ordained 
a  deacon  and  elder  for  the  express  purpose  of  going  as  a  mis- 
sionary to  Africa.  Thomas  Robinson,  Adam  Clincher,  Samuel 
Collins,  George  Bowler,  Joshua  P.  Eddy,  Henry  C.  Mervin,  Solo- 
mon Walsh,  James  Scott,  and  David  Crosby  were  licensed  preach- 
ers, and  William  Cornish  and  Walter  Proctor  were  set  apart  for 
the  office  of  deacon,  with  the  proviso  that  they  travel. 

At  this  time  that  portion  of  the  law  was  repealed  which  said 
that  a  preacher  should  not  be  stationed  in  any  place  longer  than 
two  years.  Four  other  licensed  preachers  were  ordained  deacons : 
Thomas  Robinson,  Adam  Clincher,  Samuel  Collins,  and  Noah 
Cannon. 

(31) 


32 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 


It  was  agreed  that  in  place  of  salary  the  Bishop  should  there- 
after receive  twenty-five  dollars  from  each  Annual  Conference, 
and  that  each  Conference  should  pay  his  traveling  expenses :  that 
is,  he  would  receive  compensation  at  that  period  from  the  Balti- 
timore,  Philadelphia,  and  New  York  Conferences,*  for  it  was  de- 
cided at  this  Conference  that  there  should  be  three  Annual  Con- 
ferences instead  of  two. 

When  the  question  of  the  finances  of  the  Conference  were 
being  considered,  it  was  ordered  by  that  body  that  hereafter  each 
member  must  pay  the  expenses  of  his  horse  himself.  As  the 
contingent  fund  of  this  Conference  eighty-six  dollars  were  col- 
lected, which  fund  was  distributed  as  follows:  twenty-five  dollars 
to  the  Bishop  as  allowance,  seventeen  dollars  and  twenty-seven 
cents  were  paid  for  circular  letter.-  to  the  Bishop,  and  thirty-three 
dollars  and  thirty-seven  and  a  half  cents  were  paid  for  preachers' 
horses. 

A  resolution  was  also  passed  that  no  preacher  in  charge  should 
license  any  person  who  should  make  application  to  them  for 
license  to  preach  or  exhort  in  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  until  the  said  person  should  have  been  verbally  licensed 
by  the  preacher  in  charge  twelve  months  prior  to  the  time  that 
the  application  was  made. 

The  election  of  a  general  superintendent  was  brought  forward. 
This  action  had  been  taken  by  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  April 
previous.  Then  three  candidates,  Morris  Brown,  Henry  Harden, 
and  Jacob  Matthews,  had  been  nominated,  and  an  election  had 
been  held,  but  in  accordance  with  the  resolution  passed  at  the  time, 
the  results  of  the  election  were  kept  secret  until  after  the  election 
at  Philadelphia.  The  total  votes  cast  at  both  Conferences  were  six- 
teen for  Morris  Brown,  thirteen  for  Henry  Harden,  and  twenty- 
four  for  Jacob  Matthews.  Jacob  Matthews  was  therefore  declared 
elected.  The  Philadelphia  Conference  also  decided  to  hold  its 
next  session  in  Philadelphia.  The  Society  was  not  yet  so  ex- 
tended that  it  was  deemed  wise  to  remove  the  sessions  of  these 
first  three  Conferences  from  the  cities  whose  names  they  bore, 
and  we  therefore  find  the  first  session  of  the  new  Conference — 
the  New  York — was  held  in  the  city  of  New  York. 

In  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  of  1822,  we  also  see 
the  brethren  acting  with  the  authority  of  a  General  Conference, 

*  For  the  rise  of  the  New  York  Conference  see  pages  following  the  Phil- 
adelphia Conference  of  1822, 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


33 


first,  by  the  election  of  an  Assistant  Bishop;  second,  by  decree- 
ing the  existence  of  three  Annual  Conferences.  The  action  of 
this  Conference  respecting  licentiates  to  preach  is  also  a  flat  refu- 
tation of  the  assertion  that  no  one,  according  to  our  usages  from 
the  rise  of  the  Connection,  has  ever  been  fully  admitted  unless 
they  have  been  recommended  by  a  Quarterly  Conference  of  our 
Church,  but  they  have  "climbed  in  some  other  way." 

The  limitation  of  a  stationed  preacher  to  two  years  was  also 
abolished,  as  was  previously  done  by  the  Baltimore  Annual  Con- 
ference. By  motion,  the  Conference  ordered  the  ordination  of 
William  Cornish  and  Walter  Proctor  to  the  office  of  deacons, 
provided  they  entered  upon  itinerant  work,  but  there  is  no  record 
of  the  execution  of  the  order.  This  order  to  ordain  was  given 
immediately  after  they  had  been  received  into  the  itinerant  work. 

The  motion  for  the  appointment  of  Rev.  Charles  Butler  to 
Africa  as  a  missionary  resulted  in  but  a  paper  mission. 

In  1822  the  numbers  in  Society  stood  as  follows : 


South  Carolina  City  1,400 

In  the  Circuit  Charge  1,600 

Smyrna  Circuit   31, 

Riverhead   79 

Fredericktown   15 

Cookstown   13 

Warwick   24 

Boheainarnania   10 

Frenchtown    41 

Middletown   17 

Scrabbletown   6 

Thorofare   11 

Philadelphia  City  3,002 

Chester  and  Tenecum   31 

Bristol  Circuit  in  Frankfort   25 

Bridgeport   29 

Attleborough   39 

Newhope   29 

Mountain   15 

Easton    22 

Reading   9 

Valley   13 

Westown   29 

Wightmarsh   14 


Salem  Circuit,  Port  Elizabeth...  17 


Tranfield   28 

Greenage   42 

Salem   72 

Bushtown   10 

Dutchtown...   14 

Woodbury   16 

Snowhill   42 

Evesham   47 

Total  ...6,792 

City  of  Pittsburgh   145 

Washington,  Pa   45 

Keadtown   30 

Pickson   18 

Total  i   238 

Trenton  Circuit,  Trenton   72 

Princeton   38 

Kockhill   37 

Siggstown   36 

Blandsburgh   27 

Brunswick   17 

Total   227 


\ 


34 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


This  gives  a  final  total  of  7,257  for  the  above  points ;  and  the 
joint  list  of  the  ministers  for  1822  is  as  follows: 

Baltimore  District— Jacob  Matthews,  elder  ;  Edward  Waters,  elder  ;  Ed- 
ward Williamson,  deacon  ;  John  H.  Faulks,  deacon ;  Jacob  Pearson,  Jas. 
Carr,  Solomon  Welch,  Abner  Coker,  Laven  Lee,  Caleb  Gilley. 

Philadelphia  District — Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen,  William  Cornish,  Joseph 
Coxe,  Deacon  Claton  Durham,  Deacon  Thomas  Robinson,  Deacon  Adam 
Clincher,  Deacon  Jeremiah  Dursum,  Charles  Pierce,  elder;  John  Boggs, 
David  Crosby,  Michael  Parker,  Charles  Butler,  Jonathan  Adams,  Thomas 
Webster,  Isaac  Cropper. 

Buck's  County,  Bristol  Circuit — James  Towson,  elder  in  charge  ;  Shadrack 
Bassett,  Edward  Jackson,  elder;  Robert  Butler,  William  Johnson,  deacon; 
George  Anderson,  Charles  Wilmore,  John  Messer,  William  Henry,  Thomas 
Henry,  Edward  Smith,  James  Burton. 

Salem  Circuit — Samuel  Ridley,  Elder  Reuben  Cuff,  Elder  Joseph  Oli- 
ver, Jacob  Adams,  Thomas  Banks,  Matthew  Dodson,  Seth  Cuff. 

Trenton  Circuit — Richard  Williams,  elder ;  Sampson  Peters,  deacon  ; 
Julius  Steward,  Ishmael  Berry,  Thomas  Ward,  Anthony  Tunison. 

Smyrna  Circuit — Noah  C.  Cannon,  deacon  in  charge  ;  Henry  Fox,  dea- 
con ;  James  Tavern,  deacon ;  Abraham  Anderson,  Lewis  Cork,  George 
Wright,  George  Harris,  Philip  D.  Laney,  John  Jones. 

Pittsburgh  Circuit— William  Quinn,  elder  in  charge;  George  Bowles, 
Samuel  Collins,  deacon  ;  Richard  Harvey,  Charles  Gray. 

Washington,  D.  C. — David  Smith,  elder  in  charge;  Peter  Schureman, 
George  Gant. 

Harrishurgh  Circuit — Thomas  Webster,  elder ;  Jacob  Richardson,  Joshua 
P.  B.  Eddy,  Jeremiah  Beulah,  John  Joyce,  Job  Morris,  Edward  Young, 
John  Lenderburger,  George  Smith,  Israel  Williams,  John  White,  Nathan 
Tarman. 

Eastern  Shore,  Maryland — Jeremiah  Miller,  elder  in  charge;  Joseph 
Cain,  deacon;  Samuel  Todd,  deacon;  Stephen  Stendford,  Henry  Brown, 
Graves  Holland. 

Charleston,  South  Carolina— Morris  Brown,  elder  in  charge;  Henry  Dray- 
ton, Charles  Corr,  Amos  Cruckshank,  deacon;  Marcus  Brown,  deacon; 
Smart  Simpson,  Harry  Bull,  John  B.  Matthews,  James  Eden,  London 
Turpin,  Aleck  Hailston. 

Before  we  lay  the  proceedings  of  the  first  Annual  Conference 
of  the  New  York  District  before  the  reader,  we  shall  present  an 
account  of  the  rise  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
in  the  city  of  New  York  and  its  vicinity. 

Sometime  in  the  fall  of  1819,  Brother  William  Lambert,  a  licen- 
tiate of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference,  was  commissioned 
by  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen  to  go  and  labor  in  the  city  of  New 
York  for  the  planting  of  a  branch  of  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


35 


copal  Church.    He  was  emphatically  a  missionary  from  that 
Conference.    Under  God's  blessing  he  succeeded  in  procuring  a  M  (L^a/a^^" 
school-room  in  Mott  street,  and  had  it  fitted  up  for  a  house  of  i  ^ 
worship.    In  the  summer  of  the  following  year  this  house  was 
consecrated  to  the  service  of  Almighty  God.    The  consecration  I*ns_ 
of  this  church  was  on  the  third  Sunday  in  July,  1820. 

In  the  same  year,  Rev.  Henry  Harden,  who  had  been  previous-  f 
ly  appointed  at  the  Baltimore  Conference  to  the  Harrisburg  Cir-  [ 
cuit,  was  sent  from  the  Philadelphia  Conference  to  take  the 
pastoral  charge  of  this  church  in  New  York.    The  membership 
at  that  time  amounted  to  twenty  souls,  the  majority  of  whom 
were  women.    From  that  time  the  Society  increased  weekly, 
though  very  much  opposed  by  Zion  Church.    The  Society  wor-  / 
shipped  in  this  church,  in  Mott  street,  for  the  period  of  seven  I 
years. 

The  lease  had  expired  at  the  end  of  that  time,  and  the  house 
was  taken  down.  The  Society  then  went  to  worship  for  a  short 
period  in  an  old  house  in  Allen  street,  and  afterwards  occupied 
the  Mutual  Relief  Hall  in  Orange  street,  No.  42.  From  there 
they  removed  to  the  basement  of  the  organ  factory  in  Centre 
street,  nearly  opposite  Canal  street.  Thence  they  went  to  a  fac- 
tory in  Elizabeth  street,  and  later  again  removed  to  Second 
street,  between  avenues  B  and  C,  where  a  house  was  erected  in 
the  year  1835  or  1836,  in  which  the  Society  worshipped  until 
1860,  when  it  was  sold  because  the  Society  was  literally  dying  out. 
This  gradual  decay  was  the  result  of  two  important  facts,  which 
in  all  places  we  will  do  well  to  study,  and  from  this  study  be-  ( 
come  wiser  through  the  lesson  which  is  taught : 

(a)  The  population  of  color,  which  originally  surrounded  it, 
had  been  almost  entirely  pressed  out  by  an  influx  of  Irish  and 
of  Germans. 

(b)  Moreover,  many  of  its  members  who  had  been  house-ser- 
vants in  the  wealthy  families,  who  had  moved  far  away  from 
what  was  primarily  Central  New  York  to  the  suburbs,  found  it 
then  difficult  to  reach  the  house  of  worship,  especially  in  the 
inclement  seasons  of  the  year.  The  spirit  of  caste  would  not 
allow  them  to  ride  in  the  omnibuses  then  used  for  public  con- 
veyance, so  they  attended  divine  service  nearer  to  their  homes, 
or  went  to  no  service  at  all. 

In  view  of  these  facts,  as  we  have  already  stated,  Bethel  was  I 
sold,  and  the  property  in  Sullivan  street  was  purchased  for  the  I 


36 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sum  of  twenty-five  thousand  dollars,  where  we  have  now  the 
largest  congregation  of  colored  Christians  in  the  city  of  New 
York.  During  the  last  seventeen  years  this  church  has  had  to  be 
enlarged,  owing  to  the  great  increase  in  the  membership. 

The  church  in  Brooklyn  was  founded  by  Rev.  Benjamin 
Croger  and  his  brother  Peter,  who,  with  others,  had  been  mem- 
bers of  the  M.  E.  Church  from  1808  till  the  30th  of  July,  1820, 
when,  by  a  unanimous  vote  of  the  people,  they  withdrew  from 
that  body. 

On  the  10th  of  August,  1820,  having  had  an  interview  with  Rev. 
H.  Harden,  elder  in  charge  of  our  church  in  the  city  of  New 
York,  they  became  incorporated  with  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  in  the  United  States  of  America,  by  a  joint  meet- 
ing of  the  officers  of  the  church  in  Brooklyn  and  those  of  the 
church  in  New  York.  The  meeting  was  held  in  Bethel  Church, 
then  located  in  Mott  street.  At  that  time  the  members  of  the 
church  in  Brooklyn  consisted  of  one  hundred  souls,  chiefly 
women.  These  were  divided  into  four  classes,  two  male  and  two 
female.  Four  exhorters  were  among  them,  but  no  preachers. 
Rev.  Benjamin  Croger,  and  his  brother  Peter,  were  two  of  these 
exhorters.  They  entered  the  ministry  after  they  had  joined  our 
Connection.  The  property  of  the  church  in  Brooklyn  consisted 
of  two  lots,  which  had  been  purchased  as  early  as  1817  at  a  cost 
of  $162.50  for  each  lot.  The  original  house  of  worship  was  built 
at  a  cost  of  $900. 

Societies  were  also  established  in  various  localities  beyond  the 
limits  of  the  city  of  New  York,  and  formed  into  a  Circuit  called 
the  White  Plains  Circuit.  One  was  also  established  in  the  city 
of  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  then  under  the  care  of  Brother  Charles 
Spicer,  a  deacon,  subordinate  to  Rev.  H.  Harden  of  the  New  York 
charge.  What  is  now  called  the  Branch,  and  sometimes  Thirtieth 
Street  Church,  was  planted  by  Rev.  Richard  Robinson  in  1843. 
The  planting  of  this  Society  grew  out  of  the  following  circum- 
stances : 

Many  of  the  members  of  the  church  in  Second  street,  who 
lived  at  a  distance  on  the  west  side  of  the  city,  could  not  obtain 
seats  if  they  did  not  reach  the  house  of  worship  at  a  very  early 
hour.  Therefore,  in  order  that  they  might  be  furnished  with  the 
needed  accommodation,  Brother  Robinson  consulted  with  his 
official  board  at  a  meeting  called  for  that  special  purpose,  and  they 
all  agreed  to  hire  a  small  building  in  •  street. 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina.  \¥l 

The  number  organized  in  this  Society  was  thirty.  These  were 
placed  under  the  leadership  of  Brother  Richard  Baltimore.  In 
L850  there  were  three  classes  and  three  local  preachers,  and  the 
total  number  of  members  was  one  hundred  and  thirty.  One  of 
the  most  active  of  its  official  men  was  Brother  Arnold  Ricks. 
This  Branch  Church  passed  through  many  vicissitudes,  changing 
its  location  several  times  before  becoming  definitely  settled. 

We  are  now  prepared  for  the  New  York  Annual  Conference, 
and  it  is  manifest  that  its  basis  was  weak.  Tradition  says  that 
an  Annual  Conference  was  held  in  New  York  City  as  early  as 
1821,  but  there  is  no  evidence  of  this.  The  Conference  records 
for  the  New  York  District  reach  no  farther  back  than  1822,  and 
if  the  organization  took  place  in  1821,  there  is  no  indication  of  it. 

On  the  morning  of  the  eighth  of  June,  1822,  the  first  Confer- 
ence for  this  district  was  opened  by  Bishop  Allen  in  accordance 
with  the  resolution  passed  at  the  May  Conference  in  Philadelphia. 
The  members  present  were  Rev.  Richard  Allen,  Henry  Harden, 
Thomas  Webster,  George  White,  Richard  Williams,  Samuel  Rid- 
ley, Charles  Corr,  Henry  Drayton,  Joseph  Cox,  Stephen  Dutton, 
Jeremiah  Miller,  Jacob  Matthews,  Thomas  Miller,  Isaac  Cropper, 
Joseph  Harvey,  Edmund  Crosby,  Peter  Croger,  Benjamin  Croger, 
James  Thompson,  Charles  Spicer,  Titus  Rosarett,  Henry  Davis, 
Michael  Parker,  Thomas  Jones,  Charles  Butler,  James  Scott,  John 
Morris. 

Bishop  Allen  addressed  the  Conference  in  a  most  pathetic 
manner,  impressing  upon  the  minds  of  the  brethren  the  great 
utility  of  having  union  among  ourselves  and  a  steadfastness  in 
the  African  cause.  James  Thompson,  Thomas  Miller,  George 
White,  Peter  Croger,  Edmund  Crosby,  Benjamin  Croger,  Charles 
Spicer,  Titus  Rosarett,  Henry  Davis,  Thomas  Jones,  and  William 
P.  Williams  were  admitted  on  trial.  George  White  and  Stephen 
Dutton  were  admitted  into  full  Connection.  Charles  Spicer, 
Edmund  Crosby,  Peter  Croger,  Benjamin  Croger,  and  Thomas 
Miller  were  ordained  deacons,  and  Stephen  Dutton  an  elder. 
Brother  William  Lambert,  the  founder  of  the  Connection,  died 
this  year. 

The  preachers  were  stationed  according  to  the  following  order: 
New  York,  Henry  Harden;  Long  Island  received  Stephen  Dut- 
ton; George  White  was  sent  to  White  Plains  Circuit,  while 
Charles  Spicer  was  appointed  to  New  Bedford,  "  under  the  special 
care  of  Henry  Harden."    Benjamin  Croger  was  appointed  book 


38 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


steward  for  Long  Island,  and  John  Morris  book  steward  for 
the  city  of  New  York. 

The  Conference  continued  in  session  just  six  days.  In  those 
days  the  time  for  the  meeting  of  the  next  Annual  Conference 
was  fixed  before  the  adjournment  of  its  predecessor.  Hence  we 
find  on  record  the  following  notices : 

The  Baltimore  Conference  will  be  held  in  Baltimore  on  the  second 
Tuesday  in  April,  1823. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  will  be  held  in  Philadelphia  on  the  first 
Thursday  in  May,  1823. 

The  New  York  Conference  will  be  held  on  the  last  Thursday  in  May, 
1823. 

The  total  number  of  members  in  Society  in  this  year,  1822, 
was  9,888,  an  increase  since  1818  of  3,110;  737  was  the  number 
in  Society  in  the  New  York  District,  as  reported  in  1822.  New 
York,  Bethel  Church,  had  347;  Brooklyn,  Long  Island,  had  130; 
White  Plains,  subsequently  called  Huntingdon  Circuit,  had 
27:  Cove,  now  called  Glen  Cove,  had  33;  Harlem,  24;  Jamaica, 
Long  Island,  18;  Flushing,  130;  New  Bedford,  22. 

The  minutes  of  the  three  Conferences  for  1822  were  published 
together,  and  give  the  following  list  of  ministers  in  the  Connec- 
tion at  that  time,  nearly  seventy  years  ago,  and  but  six  years 
after  the  organization  of  the  Church: 

Rev.  Richard  Allen  was  the  Bishop;  Revs.  Morris  Brown. 
Jacob  Matthews,  Henry  Harden,  Stephen  Button,  Charles  Pierce, 
Reuben  Cuff,  Thomas  Webster,  Jacob  Richardson,  William 
Quinn,  Samuel  Ridley,  Richard  Williams,  David  Smith,  George 
White,  and  Jeremiah  Miller  were  the  elders;  Revs.  Edward  Jack- 
son, Noah  Cannon,  Sampson  Peters,  Charles  Corr,  Joseph  Cox, 
Amos  Cruckshanks,  Clayton  Durham,  Adam  Clincher,  James  Sa- 
vern,ThomasRobinson.  Edward  Williamson,  Henry  Fox,  Thomas 
Miller,  William  Cornish,  James  Towsen,  Joseph  Chane,  Samuel 
Collins,  Peter  Croger,  Benjamin  Croger,  George  White,  Edmund 
Crosby,  Charles  Spicer,  Richard  Boone,  Samuel  Todd,  Henry 
Drayton,  John  H.  Foulks.  The  traveling  and  local  preachers 
were  John  Messer,  Abraham  Anderson,  Shadrack  Bassett,  Julius 
Stewart,  Thomas  Banks,  John  Bull,  George  Anderson,  William 
Johnson,  Joseph  Oliver.  Walter  Proctor,  Jeremiah  Durham,  David 
Crosby,  Michael  Parker,  Charles  Butler,  John  Boggs,  John  Gus- 
tus,  Job  Gibson,  Walter  Maxfield,  James  Cole,  Thomas  Gibson, 
Edward  Waters,  Jacob  Piercen,  Solomon  Welch,  Abner  Coker, 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


49 


Joseph  Brown,  Jeremiah  Brown,  James  Carr,  Thomas  Hall,  Jacob 
Roberts,  Caleb  Guilley,  Levi  Lea,  Abraham  Springs,  John  Smith, 
Jacob  Warner,  Thomas  Douglas,  Titus  Rosarett,  Paul  Williams, 
Edward  Byrd,  George  Bowler,  Joshua  P.  B.  Eddy,  Henry  Brown, 
Lewis  Cork,  John  Jones,  Charles  Grant,  John  B.  Matthews, 
Primus  Hopkins,  George  Barnett,  Samuel  Johnson,  Richard 
Harvey,  Israel  Scott,  Anthony  Tunison,  Edward  Smith, 
Griffin  Cooper,  Thomas  Webster,  William  Henry,  Thomas 
Henry,  Joseph  Parker,  Robert  Butler,  Charles  Wilmore,  James 
Burton,  Jacob  Adams,  Jonathan  Adams,  Richard  Gibson, 
James  Wollford,  Jesse  Johnson,  Philip  Delaney,  Stephen  Har- 
den, George  Harris,  Aaron  Miller,  George  Wright,  James  Chase, 
John  Darby,  Toff  Lossicks,  Nathan  Tarman,  Charles  Grey,  Israel 
Williams,  John  Joyce,  Edward  Young,  James  Lowe,  Job  Morris, 
James  Smith,  William  Butler,  John  Morris,  James  Thomas, 
David  Davids,  Israel  Jaimison,  John  Conover,  Adam  Hercules, 

Stephen  Stanford,  Graves  Holland,  James  Brown,  Phillip, 

Jeremiah  Beulah,  Peter  Schureman,  James  Eden,  London  Tur- 
pin,  Alexander  Harleston,  Smart  Simpson,  George  Smith,  John 
White  and  Thomas  Morris. 

These,  with  a  few  names  which  could  not  be  ascertained,  make 
up  the  ministerial  force.  Some  of  these  were  connected  with 
the  organization  in  1816;  some  did  good  work  in  the  new  mis- 
sionary fields  as  the  Connection  spread ;  some  reached  a  high 
position  in  the  Church,  and  some  dropped  into  the  oblivion  of 
death  or  obscurity  without  having  accomplished  aught  that 
history  cares  to  record. 

According  to  appointment  the  Baltimore  Conference  met  on 
the  second  Tuesday  of  April,  the  10th  day  of  the  month,  in 
1823.  Only  six  persons  were  present  at  its  opening,  but  before 
its  close  the  number  reached  twenty-six.  The  six  were  Rt.  Rev. 
Richard  Allen,  David  Smith,  John  Boggs,  Charles  Corr,  Jeremiah 
Miller,  Jacob  Matthews. 

Don  Carlos  Hall  having  died  during  the  year,  the  Conference, 
by  a  unanimous  vote,  appointed  Brother  Charles  Hacket,  a  lay- 
man, as  steward  in  his  place. 

Henry  Harden  and  Jacob  Richardson  were  the  movers  in  the 
agreement  that  was  reached  "  that  the  Annual  Conference  have 
the  prerogative  of  legislating  in  behalf  of  the  selection  of  dele- 
gates from  the  District  of  Baltimore  to  attend  the  General  Con- 
ference."   This  was  followed  by  a  vote  that  the  selection  take 


40 


*  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


place,  and  as  a  result  we  find  that  the  District  of  Baltimore 
sends  five;  the  City  of  Baltimore,  the  elder  in  charge  and 
Abner  Coker;  Washington  City,  elder  in  charge  and  George 
Bell;  Frederick  Circuit,  elder  in  charge;  Eastern  Maryland, 
elder  in  charge  and  Samuel  Todd;  Columbia  Circuit,  elder  in 
charge  and  John  Linenberger. 

Such  was  the  manner  of  electing  members  of  the  General 
Conference  of  1824  at  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  in  1823. 
What  was  the  manner  in  1819  for  the  General  Conference  of 
1820  is  not  known,  as  it  does  not  appear  on  the  face  of  the  jour- 
nal. All  that  was  done  in  relation  to  that  General  Conference 
was  the  passage  of  the  following  motion : 

It  was  moved  by  Jerry  Miller,  and  seconded  by  Don  C.  Hall,  that  the 
General  Conference  in  1820  be  held  in  Philadelphia,  and  it  was  unani- 
mously agreed  to.  -j 

Whether  any  General  Conference  was  held  in  1820  or  not  can 
not  be  ascertained  by  documentary  evidence.  There  is  nothing 
relating  to  it  beyond  the  motion  just  quoted.  The  rule  for  the 
composition  of  the  General  Conference,  as  laid  down  in  the 
original  Discipline,  is  comprised  in  the  following  words: 

The  general  Conference  or  Convention  shall  be  composed  of  one  dele- 
gate for  every  two  hundred  members  belonging  to  our  Society,  who  shall 
be  nominated  by  the  Quarterly  Meeting  Conference  and  appointed  by  the 
male  members  of  Society,  according  to  the  charters  or  constitutions  of  the 
different  African  Churches  belonging  to  our  Society  ;  but  no  minister  or 
preacher  shall  be  eligible  to  the  office  of  delegate  until  he  has  been 
licensed  according  to  our  Discipline  for  at  least  two  years. 

The  conduct  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  was  certainly  at 
variance  with  the  rule,  but  the  wherefore  is  not  apparent.  Per- 
haps they  found  it  was  impracticable,  or  perhaps  the  General 
Conference  of  1820,  if  it  were  held,  had  abrogated  it. 

The  following  document  exhibits  the  love  of  order  and  deco- 
rum which  actuated  the  minds  of  the  Annual  Conference. 
There  was  a  motion  brought  before  the  house  to  take  into  con- 
sideration some  measures  to  suppress  an  evil  which  had  been 
discovered  to  exist  amongst  our  people  as  a  body.  The  Confer- 
ence took  up  the  subject  and  appointed  a  committee  of  three, 
Henry  Harden,  Jacob  Richardson  and  Jacob  Matthews,  to  draw 
up  some  rules  which  should  be  laid  before  the  House: 

These  are  the  Rules  that  we,  in  our  judgment,  have  adopted  for  our 
present  as  well  as  our  future  welfare !  that  is,  we  are  of  the  opinion  that  all 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


41 


our  night  meetings  ought  to  commence  at  one  regular  hour— that  is,  from 
the  first  of  September  to  the  first  of  March  meetings  must  commence  at 
7  o'clock,  and  from  the  first  of  March  until  the  first  of  September  to  com- 
mence at  8  o'clock,  exclusive  of  our  Annual  Conferences  and  Quarterly 
Meetings  and  Love-feasts.  This  we  have  taken  into  consideration  to  sup- 
press the  rising  evils  that  we  have  so  repeatedly  discovered  among  us  as  a 
body  ;  we,  therefore,  as  your  brethren  and  your  ministers  in  Christ,  and 
as  those  that  must  have  to  give  an  account  of  our  stewardship,  we,  there- 
fore, deem  it  our  privilege  as  well  as  our  duty  to  recommend  it  to  all  our 
members,  and  in  particular  for  the  safe-guard  and  welfare  of  our  brethren 
and  sisters  that  are  in  servitude,  and  such  children  as  are  put  out  to  work 
or  that  are  under  their  parents'  care,  and  in  particular  in  cities  and  towns. 

The  Annual  Conference  ratified  this  by  a  unanimous  vote. 

Three  were  set  apart  for  deacon's  orders  on  Sabbath  morning: 
Jacob  Pierson,  Abner  Coker  and  Jeremiah  Beulah. 

The  amount  of  collections  raised  for  the  use  of  the  Annual 
Conference  was  forty-six  dollars,  and  it  was  expended  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner: 

For  the  annual  services  of  the  Bishop  $12  00 

For  his  passage  from  Philadelphia  to  Baltimore  and  return..    9  00 

Received  for  letters  at  this  Conference   12  00 

For  feeding  the  preachers'  horses  !   8  05 

From  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1823  we  pass,  from  neces- 
sity, to  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  1824;*  but  nothing 
of  importance  or  general  interest  wras  done  in  the  Baltimore  An- 
nual Conference  this  year.  The  tide  of  affairs  was  rather  dark 
and  turbulent.  We  shall,  therefore,  do  nothing  more  than  give 
an  abstract  of  its  proceedings. 

It  was  opened  on  the  24th  of  April,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore, 
with  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen  presiding,  and  Rev.  Morris  Brown 
as  assistant.    Jacob  Matthews  was  its  secretary. 

Rev.  Jacob  Richardson  reported  his  charge  in  a  better  condition 
than  it  had  ever  been  before.  Jeremiah  Beulah  gave  a  favorable 
report  of  his  circuit,  and  said  that  he  had  added  another  church 
to  it.  Edward  Waters  was  not  fully  prepared  to  give  an  account 
of  his  charge.    It  was  resolved,  too,  that  if  any  member  of  the 

*The  minutes  for  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  of  1823  are  not 
extant.  The  minutes  for  the  New  York  Conferences  from  1822  to  1831  are 
lost.  A  diligent  search  in  1850  failed  to  find  any  records  beyond  1831. 
Some  of  the  old  members  of  Bethel  Church  stated  that  the  journal  of 
Conference  had  been  carried  to  the  Court  of  Chancery,  and  had  never 
been  seen  since.  It  was  this  Court  in  which  our  suit  against  London  Tur- 
pin  involved  us. 


42 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Conference  be  found  carrying  out  any  of  its  secrets  by  letter  or 
word,  he  should  forfeit  his  seat  in  the  Conference. 

As  the  second  General  Conference  was  held  this  year,  we  shall 
give  the  numbers  in  Society  and  the  stationing  of  the  preachers: 

Baltimore  City  and  vicinity,  715;  Fredericktown  Circuit,  in- 
cluding Frederick  town,  Hagerstown,  Greencastle,  Shippensburgh, 
-Carlisle,  Harrisburgh,  Chambersburgh,  317;  Eastern  Shore,  Mary- 
land, including  Eastern,  Concord,  Pekin's  Island,  Denton,  Hole- 
in-the-Wall,  Ivorytown,  Miles  River,  Hillsborough,  543;  Wash- 
ington City  and  Piscataway  respectively,  112  and  166;  Hartford 
Circuit,  including  Havre  de  Grace,  Swamp,  Presburgs  and  Deer 
Creek,  175;  making  a  total  of  2,028. 

The  preachers  were  stationed  as  follows  :  Baltimore,  Rev.  Moses 
Freeman;  Harrisburgh  Circuit,  Richard  Williams,  elder,  and 
Peter  Schureman,  preacher;  Easton  Circuit.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Beu- 
lah  and  Wm.  Richardson  :  Washington  City  and  Piscataway, 
Rev.  Jacob  Matthews. 

The  financial  report  of  the  General  Conference  showed  the  col- 
lection for  the  General  Conference  to  be  $42.25 ;  "passage  for  the 
Bishop,"  $9;  paid  to  the  Bishop,  $25;  General  Conference,  $8.33; 
paid  for  letters  to  the  Bishop,  S11.12J,  and  "for  horse  feed  in  time 
of  Conference/'  $8.44;  making  a  total  of  $104.14*. 

It  will  be  recollected  that  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of 
1819,  by  a  unanimous  vote,  fixed  the  meeting  of  the  General 
Conference  of  1820  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  This  year  it* 
wTas  held  in  Baltimore.  The  Annual  Conference  was  opened  on 
the  24th  of  April,  and  continued  in  session  until  the  30th.  The 
next  day  witnessed  the  opening  of  the  second  General  Confer- 
ence of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

The  preachers'  salaries  ranged  as  follows:  Jacob  Richardson, 
$26;  Jeremiah  Beulah,  $18.90;  Shadrack  Bassett,  $15;  Peter 
Schureman.  85.75;  Jacob  Matthews,  $10;  a  total  of  $125.65  for 
salaries  in  1824  in  this  Conference. 

We  have  no  record  of  the  proceedings  of  this  General  Confer- 
ence save  the  vestige  found  in  the  financial  report  given,  and 
bearing  date  of  May  11th.  1*24.  in  which  it  is  declared  that 
Bishop  Allen  received  from  it  the  sum  of  $8.33.  It  is  also  stated 
in  the  financial  report  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference 
for  1824,  that  S52.49  were  paid  to  defray  the  expenses  of  six  dele- 
gates to  the  General  Conference  at  Baltimore.  We  judge  that 
the  General  Conference  closed  its  session  on  the  11th,  as  it  is  on 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


43 


that  date  that  we  find  it  recorded  that  it  paid  the  Bishop  $8.33. 
We  find  that  Rev.  Jacoh  Matthews  was  secretary  for  both  the 
Annual  and  General  Conferences. 

The  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  for  1824  was  opened  Sat- 
urday morning,  May  22d,  eleven  days  after  the  close  of  the  Gen- 
eral Conference.  Joseph  M.  Corr  was  chosen  secretary.  He  was 
the  youngest  man  in  the  Conference,  the  best  educated,  and,  it  is 
said,  the  most  gifted  preacher. 

Some  of  the  pages  of  this  manuscript  journal  are  torn  out,  and 
thus  some  of  the  doings  are  a  mere  matter  of  conjecture.  It  was 
decided  to  keep  the  members  to  their  work  promptly  by  a  resolu- 
tion, that  if  not  present  after  the  time  appointed  each  should 
forfeit  twenty-five  cents  for  the  use  of  the  Conference.  It  was  also 
resolved  that  the  circuit  should  "bear  all  the  traveling  expenses 
through  the  year  of  the  preachers  traveling  the  circuit,  and  their 
expenses  coming  to  Conference." 

This  may  be  considered  the  origin  of  the  present  Rule  of  Dis- 
cipline, on  page  228,  relative  to  the  support  and  expenses  of 
traveling  preachers,  as  it  is  the  first  time  we  find  a  written  rule 
defining  the  duty  of  the  Church  on  this  important  subject.  The 
Discipline  of  1817  was  very  indefinite,  as  the  subjoined  extract 
will  show: 

Section  II. 

Of  the  Salaries  of  the  Ministers  and  Preachers,  and  allowances  to  their  Wives, 
Widows  and  Children. — This  shall  rest  with  the  Annual  Conferences  res- 
pectively. 

Section  IV. 

Of  tlie  Book  Concern. — The  profits  of  all  the  books  published  by  authority 
of  the  General  Conference,  or  Convention,  shall  go  to  the  support  of  the 
traveling  ministry,  as  the  Annual  Conference  from  time  to  time  may  think 
proper. 

The  origin  of  another  present  custom  among  us  is  found  in  a 
resolution  "that  each  preacher  stationed  on  any  circuit  shall 
receive  a  certificate  from  the  president  of  the  Conference,  stating 
the  circuit  to  which  they  are  appointed." 

Shadrack  Bassett,  William  Cornish  and  Marcus  Brown  were 
received  into  full  connection,  and  Joshua  P.  B.  Eddy  was  located. 
There  was  collected  for  the  contingent  expenses  of  this  Philadel- 
phia Conference,  $148.92,  while  the  expenses  amounted  to  $139.79, 
among  which  we  find  the  expenses  of  the  six  delegates  to  the 
General  Conferences  in  Baltimore  rated  as  $52.49,  while  another 


44 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


item,  $5.75,  is  for  printing  the  minutes  of  1822.  From  this  last 
we  are  led  to  infer  that  the  minutes  of  1823  were  not  published. 

The  appointments  from  this  Conference  were  Rev.  Jeremiah 
Miller  to  Chillicothe,  Ohio;  Philip  Brodie  and  Jeremiah  Miller 
to  Cincinnati,  O.;  Rev.  Noah  C.  W.  Cannon  to  Steubenville,  O., 
and  George  Bowler  to  Redstone,  these  two  points  being  under  the 
care  of  T.  Webster;  Rev.  Richard  Williams  was  sent  to  Fred- 
ericktown,  Peter  Schureman  to  Frederick  Circuit,  Rev.  Joseph 
Harper  and  Rev.  Morris  Brown  to  Bristol  Circuit,  Rev.  William 
Cornish  to  Philadelphia,  Rev.  Samuel  Ridley  to  Trenton  Circuit, 
Thomas  A.  Dorsey  to  Salem  Circuit,  and  Rev.  John  Boggs  to 
Smyrna  Circuit. 

In  this  year  (1824)  the  membership  of  the  Philadelphia  Dis- 
trict was,  for  Philadelphia  Station  and  Circuit,  3,000,  and  Hamil- 
ton Village,*  27.  Bristol  Circuit,  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  reported  a 
membership  of  438,  distributed  among  the  following  points : 
Fr;mkford,55 ;  Hornesburg,20;  Bridgeport,  50;  Attleborough,  105 ; 
Newton,  30;  Newhope,  50;  Whitemarsh,  15;  West  Chester,  50; 
Conkerd,  18;  Valley,  35;  Mountain,  10.  Smyrna  Circuit,  Delaware, 
reported  173:  19  from  Smyrna,  22  from  Boheamarnania,  18  from 
Frenchtown,  15  from  Elkton,  17  from  Middletown,  11  from  Thor- 
oughfare Neck,  36  from  Sassafras  Head,  8  from  Crooktown,  27  from 
AVarwick.  Salem  Circuit,  New  Jersey,  had  173  :  27  from  Port  Eli- 
zabeth, 9  from  Fairfield,  38  from  Greenwich,  80  from  Salem,  3(5 
from  Bushtown,  6  from  Scrabbletown,  24  from  Dutchtown,  25 
from  Woodbury,  30  from  Snowhill,  42  from  Cross  Roads,  20  from 
Mount  Holly.  Trenton  Circuit,  New  Jersey,  reported  204:  120 
from  Trenton  City,  29  from  Princeton,  22  from  Launsburg,  33 
from  Rocky  Hill.  Columbia  Circuit,  Pa.,  had  210:  Columbia, 
45;  Charleston,  16;  Little  York,  39;  Marietta,  38;  Lancaster,  14; 
Mount  V ernon,  38 ;  Martrick  Township,  20.  The  Western  District, 
State  of  Pennsylvania,  comprised  Pittsburgh  City,  85;  Washing- 
ton, 34;  Uniontown,  38;  Brownsville,  12;  Geneva,  12;  Monmouth, 
12 ;  making  a  total  of  193.  Jefferson  County  Circuit,  Ohio,  reported 
63,  Steubenville,  Mount  Pleasant,  and  Cape  Belmoths  having  45, 
12,  and  6  respectively.  Chillicothe  Circuit,  Ohio,  included  Chilli- 
cothe, Zanesville,  Lancaster  and  Cincinnati,  the  last  named  alone 
reporting  its  membership,  which  was  33. 

The  statistics  at  the  second  General  Conference  exhibit  two 


*Now  West  Philadelphia. 


Extinction  of  the  Church  in  South  Carolina. 


46 


facts:  First,  the  loss  of  territory  in  South  Carolina,  and  the 
acquisition  of  new  territory  in  Ohio.  But  the  loss  was  in  many 
respects  greater  than  the  gain.  In  respect  to  numbers  and  wealth 
it  was  really  so. 

The  loss  of  South  Carolina  was  occasioned  by  a  terrible  civil 
excitement  in  1822,  which  was  produced  by  the  discovery  of  a 
contemplated  insurrection  on  the  part  of  certain  slaves  for  the 
overthrow  of  slavery  in  that  State.  The  ringleaders,  six  in  num- 
ber, were  arrested,  tried  and  convicted,  and  hung  on  a  single  gal- 
lows at  a  single  blow.  Chief  of  these  were  Denmark  Vesey  and  i 
Gullak  Jack.  Subsequently  twenty-two  of  the  conspirators  were 
convicted  of  the  same  offense,  to-wit:  a  combination  to  overthrow 
the  most  villainous  system  of  oppression  beneath  the  sun.  They, 
too,  were  hung  on  the  same  gallows,  and  at  the  same  moment. 
They  had  not  shed  a  drop  of  their  so-called  master's  blood,  nor 
had  they  taken  up  arms  or  committed  one  act  of  violence,  but 
they  had  conspired  against  the  infernal  system,  and  that  was  a 
crime  in  itself  sufficiently  heinous  to  be  punished  with  death. 

But  slavery  is  a  system  based  upon  injustice,  born  of  violence 
and  blood,  hence  it  knows  not  what  is  mercy  nor  justice.  But 
how  terribly  has  the  blood  of  these  helpless  victims  been  avenged 
by  the  punitive  visitation  of  indignant  Heaven  during  the  Civil 
War  and  Rebellion  against  the  American  Union !  How  differ- 
ently has  the  spirit  of  Liberty  dealt  with  the  blood-stained  lead- 
ers of  the  Rebellion  of  1860-65 !  Their  conspiracy  against  Liberty  j 
and  the  American  Union  resulted  in  the  death  of  about  two  hun- 
dred and  seventy-nine  thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy-six 
men,  and  a  National  debt  of  ten  billions  three  hundred  and 
sixty-one  millions  nine  hundred  and  twenty-nine  thousand  nine 
hundred  and  nine  dollars ;  yet  they  were  allowed  to  go  unpunished. 

The  slaveholders  of  South  Carolina  were  not  satisfied  with  pun-  * 
ishing  with  death  the  conspiracy  against  slavery  in  that  State ; 
they  did  not  stop  their  proceedings  till  our  Church  in  that  State 
was  entirely  suppressed.  Being  an  independent  ecclesiastical 
organization,  it  gave  the  idea  and  produced  the  sentiment  of  per- 
sonal freedom  and  responsibility  in  the  Negro. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


THE  FIRST  DECADE. 

Close  of  First  Decade — A  Comparison — Twenty-nine  Appointments  in  the 
Baltimore  District — Sixty-five  Appointments  in  the  Philadelphia  Dis- 
trict— Eight  Churches  in  New  York  District— Growth  since  1818— Fo 
Sunday-schools  in,1826— Difficulties  Under  Which  the  Ministry  Labored 
— Their  Improvement— Education  of  the  Colored  Population  Forbidden 
— Home  Missions. 

AMONG  the  transactions  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  for 
1825  there  is  nothing  of  great  importance.  The  minutes 
show  that  much  of  the  time  was  taken  up  in  strife  over  a 
case  of  maladministration,  and  from  it  we  find  that  the  order 
of  punishment,  in  this  case  at  least,  was  the  reverse  of  the  order 
which  now  obtains.  The  party  was  silenced  for  six  months, 
after  which  he  was  sharply  reproved  before  the  Annual  Confer- 
ence, and  then  restored  to  his  functions  as  a  traveling  preacher. 

Nathaniel  Peek  was  received  on  trial  for  three  months,  and 
Adam  Hercules  on  a  full  course  as  an  itinerant  preacher.  Peter 
D.  Schureman  applied  for  deacon's  orders,  but  wras  rejected, 
while  the  permission  to  go  to  Hayti,  asked  by  Moses  Freeman, 
was  also  refused.  Rev.  Moses  Freeman  and  Charles  Hacket 
were  appointed  a  committee  to  raise  moneys  to  print  the  Disci- 
pline. 

The  total  sum  raised  for  ministers'  salaries  was  $472.04,  distrib- 
uted among  the  ministers  as  follows:  The  salary  of  Rev.  Moses 
Freeman,  pastor  of  Bethel,  Baltimore,  was  $198.25;  that  of  Rev. 
J.  Matthews,  of  Washington  City,  $80.00;  that  of  J.  Beulah, 
Easton  Circuit,  $17.50;  that  of  W.  Richardson,  of  the  same 
circuit,  $14.50;  of  Rev.  R.  Williams,  of  Harrisburgh  Circuit, 
$67.89,  and  of  Rev.  P.  Schureman,  of  the  same  circuit,  $93.90. 

One  hundred  and  fifteen  dollars  were  raised  for  contingent 
expenses,  out  of  which  the  secretary  received  six  dollars  for  his 
services,  which  is  the  second  instance  on  record  of  the  Confer- 
ence paying  its  secretary. 

In  many  respects  the  transactions  of  the  Baltimore  Confer- 
ence in  1826  were  the  most  imposing,  the  most  important,  and 
(46) 


The  First  Decade. 


47 


the  most  interesting  of  any  previous  one — we  might  say,  more 
so  than  all  put  together.  There  is,  indeed,  a  business  tact  and 
dignity  about  it  which  commands  our  respect  at  the  same  time 
that  it  takes  us  by  surprise.  It  opened  its  deliberations  on  Mon- 
day, April  10,  1826,  with  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen  presiding. 
Joseph  M.  Corr  was  chosen  secretary. 

A  resolution  was  adopted  by  the  Conference  "that  all  cxhort- 
ers  and  stewards  that  stand  fair,  and  who  are  in  full  connection, 
shall  be  admitted  to  a  seat  in  the  Annual  Conference,  but  have 
neither  voice  nor  vote." 

Up  to  thi  time  these  two  classes  of  men  always  had  a  voice 
and  vote  in  Conference — the  Conference  steward  most  assuredly, 
who,  from  the  formation  of  the  Connection,  had  always  been 
Don  Carlos  Hall,  and  after  his  lamented  death,  Charles  Hacket. 
It  seemed  good  in  the  sight  of  the  clergy  at  this  Tenth  Confer- 
ence to  deprive  them  of  these  privileges.  The  reasons  for  this 
action  do  not  appear  on  the  face  of  the  minutes. 

At  the  opening  of  the  Conference  several  of  the  most  promi- 
nent men  were  impeached  and  put  on  trial.  The  pastoral  letters 
sent  forth  to  several  churches  who  were  interested  in  the  im- 
peachments will  show  the  wisdom  and  piety  of  those  who  con- 
trolled the  affairs  of  the  Conference  and  its  churches : 

Baltimore,  April  13,  1826. 
Dear  Brethren  of  the  Church  in  Christ,  in  the  Borough  of  Chambersburgh,  under 

the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Bishop  and  Conference : 

We  have  taken  up  our  pen  to  inform  you  that  our  Conference  com- 
menced in  this  city  on  Monday  last,  and  the  case  of  Brother  came 

before  us,  and,  after  a  thorough  investigation  of  the  subject,  the  Confer- 
ence thought  it  no  breach  of  discipline  in  his  calling  in  the  white  elder  to 
administer  the  Lord's  Supper ;  and  as  it  respects  his  debt  on  the  circuit, 
which  caused  his  horse  to  be  sold,  we  are  of  the  opinion  that,  had  Brother 

 received  his  full  quarterages  on  the  circuit,  he  would  have  been 

able  to  discharge  his  debts  honorably  ;  but  having  examined  his  returns, 
we  have  found  he  has  come  short  of  receiving  his  quarterages  by  eighty 
dollars.  We  have  found  he  was  totally  unable  to  discharge  his  debts. 
By  this,  we  are  sorry  that  so  small  a  circumstance  should  cause  such  great 
interruptions  on  the  circuit.  When  the  preacher  errs  the  official  members 
have  no  right  to  shut  the  doors  of  the  church  against  him,  except  the 
crime  is  of  such  magnitude  as  totally  unfits  a  man  for  the  kingdom  of 
heaven,  and  even  then,  the  superintendent  should  be  first  informed  of  it, 
and  the  case  laid  before  the  Annual  Conference. 

The  Conference  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  official  members  of  the  circuit 
should  act  according  to  rule  and  order  as  well  as  the  preacher.    We  hope 


48 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


in  future  that  peace  and  tranquility  will  abound  among  you,  and  that 
preachers  and  people  will  pull  together  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  pros- 
perity of  his  Church.  The  Conference  does  not  wish  to  screen  a  preacher 
in  his  wrongs;  but  it  washes  to  have  justice  done  him.  The  impeach- 
ments you  sent  on  the  Conference  found  not  sufficient  to  exclude  a 
preacher.  Dear  brethren,  we  ought  to  be  exceedingly  careful  how  we  let 
such  small  evils  get  into  our  Churches,  as  they  do  a  great  harm  to  the  souls 
of  our  brethren  ;  but  as  Methodists,  leaders,  and  stewards  that  love  disci- 
pline, we  should  endeavor  to  eye  the  glory  of  God,  and  do  all  things  in 
order  for  the  tranquility  and  peace  of  the  Church  of  God.  We  have  at 
present  great  prospects  in  the  City  of  Baltimore  of  this  being  the  greatest 
Conference  ever  held  in  this  place.  Great  harmony  prevails  among  our1 
preachers,  and  the  slain  of  the  Lord  are  many.  Our  congregations  are 
very  numerous,  and  our  meetings  continue  the  whole  night,  which  caused 
our  hearts  to  rejoice  at  the  display  of  the  Lord  among  us. 

We  remain  your  affectionate  brethren  in  Christ  and  in  the  bonds  of 
peace.  Rev.  Richard  Allen,  President. 

Joseph  M.  Corr,  Secretary. 

Signed  by  order  of  the  Conference. 

Another  letter  was  ordered  to  be  written  to  Columbia  Circuit, 
and  is  as  follows  : 

Baltimore,  April  13,  1826. 
To  the  Church  of  Christ  located  in  the  town  of  Columbia,  under  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Bishop  and  Conference  : 

We  have  taken  up  our  pen  to  inform  you  that  our  Conference  com- 
menced sitting  in  this  city  on  Monday  last,  and  the  case  of  came 

before  them,  and  the  Conference  was  of  the  opinion  that  his  trial  was 
illegal  by  the  preacher  having  the  charge.  The  Conference  proceeded  to 
take  up  the  charges  against  him,  and,  after  a  thorough  investigation  of 
them,  he  was  honorably  acquitted  and  restored  to  his  former  functions. 
The  Conference  recommends  to  our  dear  brethren  of  Columbia  to  let  all 
hardness  and  ill  thoughts  be  done  away  with,  and  that  peace  and  harmony 
by  your  love  and  union  may  prevail,  and  that  you  will  still  strive  to  do 
everything  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  prosperity  of  the  Church  by 
preachers  and  people  wrorking  together  in  the  fear  of  God,  and  pulling 
together  for  the  lasting  honor  of  the  Church,  the  glory  of  God,  and  the 
salvation  of  souls. 

Rev.   ,  as  a  man  of  God  and  a  friend  to  the  Connection,  acknowl- 
edges his  error  in  the  illegality  of  the  trial,  and  submitted  it  to  the  Con- 
ference. 

Signed  by  the  Conference.  Richard  Allen,  President. 

Joseph  M.  Corr,  Secretary. 

The  means  devised  for  the  preservation  of  order  and  decorum 
in  this  interesting  Conference  were  those  savoring  of  early  times, 
assuredly.    If  any  one  should  fall  asleep  during  the  sitting  of 


The  First  Decade. 


49 


Conference  he  should  pay  a  fine  of  twelve  and  a-half  cents.  A 
penalty  of  five  cents  was  the  price  which  should  he  paid  if  one 
person  should  "contradict  another  while  on  his  feet." 

The  preachers  received  on  trial  were  Reuben  Melvin,  Wash- 
ington Dorrill  and  James  Richards.  William  Richardson  was 
received  into  full  connection  and  ordained  deacon,  together 
with  Charles  Dunn. 

The  preachers'  salaries  for  the  three  circuits  and  Baltimore 
City  amounted  to  $448.30.  The  sum  of  $50.60  was  collected  for 
contingent  expenses.  We  also  find  an  item  of  expense  for  the 
Bishop's  assistant's  traveling  expenses.  This  assistant  was  the 
Rev.  Morris  Brown. 

One  other  pastoral  letter,  addressed  to  the  Church  at  Easton, 
Maryland,  shows  such  a  prudent  and  determined  effort  to  do  all 
things  justly  that  it  is  inserted  here: 

Baltimore,  April  17,  1826. 
Dear  Brethren  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in  (lie  tovm  of  Easton,  under  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Bishop,  and  Conference: 

We  have  taken  up  our  pen  to  inform  you  that  our  Conference  com- 
menced in  this  city  on  Monday  last,  and  your  business  came  before  the 
Conference.  The  grievances  of  our  brethren  were  duly  considered,  and 
the  case  thoroughly  investigated,  and  both  parties  acknowledged  their 
wrongs,  and  the  Conference  thought  proper  to  write  you  an  official  letter, 
to  let  you  know  their  decision,  and  that  the  matter  was  finally  settled,  and 
that  the  preacher  should  read  the  deed  of  conveyance  of  the  church  to 
you,  and  let  you  know  the  public  debt  of  the  Church,  to  give  you  general 
satisfaction,  and  that  the  class  in  Ivory  town  shall  be  removed  back  to  the 
Church  in  Easton,  and  that  no  class  shall  meet  at  Ivorytown  but  the  class 
that  was  formed  for  the  aged  and  infirm,  and  that  your  leader  shall  not 
encourage  any  member  to  meet  at  Ivorytown  in  the  aged  and  infirm  class, 
so  as  to  prevent  them  from  meeting  the  Easton  class  that  meets  at  the 
church. 

And  we  recommend  to  our  brethren  and  sisters  in  Ivorytown  and  Eas- 
ton to  meet  their  class  in  the  church,  and  attend  to  their  public  services; 
and  we  entreat  you  to  let  all  hardness  and  ill  thoughts  be  done  away,  and 
that  peace  and  tranquillity  will  abound  among  you,  and  that  preachers  and 
people  will  strive  to  pull  together  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the  salvation 
of  souls;  and  as  the  lovers  of  Methodist  rules  and  discipline,  we  hope  you 
will  comply  with  all  our  requisitions  for  the  preservation  of  harmony, 
good  order,  love,  and  union. 

Dear  brethren,  yours  in  the  bonds  of  peace. 

Signed  by  order  of  the  Conference. 

Richard  Allen,  President. 

Joseph  M.  Corr,  Secretary. 
4 


50 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Would  to  God  that  the  good  example  of  this  prudent  Confer- 
ence had  been  followed  in  all  subsequent  cases,  and  throughout 
our  fields  of  labor!  Then,  many  a  rupture  would  have  been 
prevented,  and  many  bleeding  wounds  healed,  as  though  the 
very  balm  of  Gilead  had  been  poured  into  them. 

The  secretary  of  this  and  the  succeeding  Conference,  Charles 
M.  Corr,  was  from  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  and  was  among 
those  who  emigrated  from  that  city  to  Philadelphia  after  the 
murderous  transactions  of  the  state  of  South  Carolina  in  the 
case  of  Denmark  Vesey  and  his  compatriots,  whom  we  have 
seen  were  put  to  death  for  merely  planning  against  the  crime  of 
human  slavery,  which,  according  to  the  just  views  of  Frederick 
Douglass,  was  "chronic  rebellion  against  humanity."  At  the 
Philadelphia  Conference  of  this  same  year,  he  was  made  the 
general  secretary  of  all  the  Conferences,  at  the  expense  of  each 
Conference. 

This  year  (1826)  the  Philadelphia  Conference  minutes  are 
again  to  be  found,  and  this  body  was  convened  on  Monday, 
May  1st.  A  few  sentences  will  show  its  transactions,  with  two 
or  three  exceptions,  to  have  been  of  very  little  general  interest. 
Four  preachers  were  received  on  trial — William  Shats,  Austin 
Jones,  and  Lewis  Cork  as  traveling,  and  James  Wilson  as  a  local 
preacher.  It  also  resolved  that  all  African  preachers  coming  to 
join  us  from  the  Methodist  Connection,  and  who  are  in  good 
standing  and  well  recommended,  shall'be  received  into  our  Con- 
ferences, as  our  own  preachers  are,  by  the  recommendation  of  our 
Quarterly  Meeting  Conference. 

Brother  Peter  Woods  had  died  this  Conference  year.  He  was 
a  local  preacher  who  had  been  two  years  in  the  work,  a  native 
of  Virginia,  and  a  young  man  of  "  sound  judgment,  clear  under- 
standing, genuine  piety,  and  a  humble,  holy,  and  useful  laborer 
in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,"  so  say  the  records.  His  death 
occurred  at  Washington,  Pa.,  December  22,  1825. 

The  salaries  of  the  ministers  for  the  ten  circuits  and  stations 
amounted  to  $614.14f. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  adopted  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  the  time  appointed  for  the  sitting  of  the  New  York  Con- 
ference be  revoked  from  the  12th  of  June  to  tne  20th  of  May,  if  conven- 
ient to  the  New  York  brethren. 

The  first  decade  of  our  history  as  a  Church  closes  with  this 


The  First  Decade. 


51 


year.  By  comparing  the  state  of  affairs  at  this  time  (1826)  with 
our  condition  at  the  first  Conference  on  record  we  shall  see  what 
progress  the  Connection  had  made  at  the  end  of  the  first  ten 
years  of  its  existence. 

In  the  last  report  Baltimore  had  within  her  pastorate  the  Har- 
risburg  Circuit,  including  nine  appointments,  Fredericktown  Cir- 
cuit with  ten  appointments,  Eastern  Shore  of  Maryland  Circuit 
with  seven  appointments,  and  Washington  with  three  appoint- 
ments, making  a  total  of  twenty-nine  appointments.  These 
twenty-nine  churches  had  seven  pastors,  who  had  charge  of  two 
thousand  three  hundred  and  four  souls,  and  the  support  which 
these  gave  to  the  ministry  amounted  to  only  $448.30. 

At  the  same  time  the  Philadelphia  District  reported  Trenton 
Circuit  with  five  appointments,  Salem  Circuit  with  ten,  Bristol 
Circuit  with  seven,  Smyrna  Circuit  with  eight,  Lewiston  Circuit 
with  nine,  Washington  Circuit  with  five,  Steubenville  Circuit 
with  three,  Chillicothe  Circuit  with  two,  Zanesville  Circuit  with 
one,  and  Cincinnati  Station ;  also  that  of  Philadelphia — a  total 
of  sixty-five  appointments.  Fourteen  pastors  had  charge  of  these, 
which  reported  four  thousand  six  hundred  and  six  souls,  and  the 
pastors'  salaries  from  these  reached  the  sum  of  $614. 14f. 

In  contrast  we  bring  forward  the  past.  In  1818  Baltimore  re- 
ported one  circuit  and  one  station — Dossett  Circuit  and  Baltimore 
Station.  There  were  but  three  pastors,  and  a  membership  of  one 
thousand  and  sixty,  who  gave  to  their  preachers  for  salaries, 
$340. 

New  York  had  received  into  her  soul  the  vegetating  seed  in 
the  fall  of  1819,  for  then  the  first  church  was  planted  by  Rev. 
William  Lambert,  who  was  commissioned,  as  we  have  seen,  by 
the  Philadelphia  Conference,  and  in  1822  she  reported  for  the 
District  appointments  eight  churches,  with  seven  hundred  and 
twenty-seven  in  Society,  over  which  were  placed  four  pastors. 

The  brief  records  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  for 
1818 — the  earliest  records  to  be  found— give  very  little  idea  of 
the  work.  The  members  in  Society  in  Philadelphia  are  given  as 
three  thousand  three  hundred  and  eleven  in  number.* 

It  is  evident  from  even  this  meager  data  that  the  Lord  had 
strengthened  our  cords  and  strengthened  our  stakes,  so  that  our 

*The  comparison  is  made  between  these  Conferences  in  1818,  as  far  as 
possible,  though  the  first  reported  work  comes  from  the  New  York  Con- 
ence  in  1822. 


52 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Zion  could  say  in  the  language  of  Jacob,  "  With  my  staff  I 
passed  over  this  Jordan,  and  now  I  am  become  two  bands." 

At  the  end  of  this  first  decade  we  find  no  traces  of  any  efforts 
for  literary  improvement  among  the  ministers,  nor  for  the  edu- 
cation of  the  rising  generation  through  any  agency  of  the  Con- 
ferences. 

There  was  no  missionary  society,  no  "Daughters  of  Confer- 
ence" society,  for  the  temporal  aid  of  the  preachers,  nor  any 
efforf  of  the  kind  among  the  preachers  themselves.  Nor  do  we 
perceive  any  traces  of  the-  revision  of  the  Discipline,  which  was 
first  published  in  1817,  over  the  signatures  of  Richard  Allen, 
Daniel  Coker,  and  James  Champion.  The  minutes  of  the  Con- 
ferences were  occasionally  published.  No  allusion  is  made  to 
our  Hymn  Book,  so  that  up  to  1826  we  have  no  proof  of  its  exist- 
ence.   Probably  the  Hymn  Book  of.  the  M.  E.  Church  was  used. 

The  authority  to  publish  books  was  lodged  in  the  hands  of 
Bishop  Allen  by  a  vote  of  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  in 
1818,  and  up  to  this  date  had  never  been  taken  away  from  him. 
At  this  time,  too,  there  was  no  Sunday-school  in  existence  in  our 
Church. 

The  absence  of  what  we  are  accustomed  to  consider  at  the 
present  day  the  necessary  adjuncts  of  Church  life  is  not  to  be 
wondered  at  when  we  consider  the  manner  in  which  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  was  born,  the  troubles  and  annoyances  heaped  upon  it 
by  those  who  should  have  befriended  her  in  the  hour  of  her 
birth.  The  animosity  shown  by  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
does  not  reflect  any  lustre  or  glory,  but  rather  stands  as  a  strain 
upon  her  credit — not  wanting  the  colored  people,  yet  unwilling 
to  let  them  go ;  and  when  of  their  own  accord  the  despised  mem- 
bers separated,  resorting  to  subterfuge,  and  invoking  the  action 
of  the  law  to  compel  them  to  return  to  their  position  of  vassal- 
age and  ill-usage.  This  is  the  course  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  at  the  time  when  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  or  rather  its  progenitor,  the  African  Church  in  Philadel- 
phia, most  needed  assistance  and  friendly  advice. 

In  addition  to  the  burdens  imposed  upon  the  youthful  Church 
by  the  outside  world,  she  had  also  to  contend  with  dissensions 
and  turbulence  within  herself.  Many  of  her  ministers  and  elders 
were  impatient  under  the  rules  of  the  Church,  and  frequent 
breaches  of  discipline  took  place.  These  ministers  were  unac- 
customed to  the  laws  governing  the  progress  and  purposes  of  the 


The  Fird  Decade. 


Church — unaccustomed  to  command  or  to  rule,  and  with  a  pecu- 
liar notion  of  the  powers  of  their  office,  which  were  often  exer- 
cised in  a  degree  calculated  to  lead  to  complaint  from  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Conference.  As  a  result  we  find  the  time  of  that 
body  occupied  by  the  listening  to,  aud  the  rectification  of, 
complaints  which  should  never  have  come  before  the  Confer- 
ence. 

The  absence  of  any  efforts  for  literary  improvement  among  the 
ministers,  and  the  want  of  any  means  of  education  among  the 
rising  generation,  and  the  total  absence  of  Sunday-schools,  are 
all  to  be  regretted,  but  the  condition  of  affairs  here  indicated 
cannot  altogether  be  attributed  to  any  apathy  upon  the  part  of 
the  Church.  Perhaps  the  lack  of  literary  improvement  in  the 
ministry  might  be  considered  the  fault  of  the  individual  minis- 
ter; but  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  men  appointed  to  the 
positions  of  elders  and  deacons  were  all  full  grown,  and  had 
reached  manhood  before  they  were  so  appointed.  Many  of  them 
had  had  no  opportunities  to  lay  the  foundation  of  an  education, 
even  of  a  most  rudimentary  kind,  in  their  youth,  the  time  in 
which  an  education  should  be  commenced.  In  manhood,  and 
while  acting  in  the  various  offices  of  the  Church,  their  efforts 
had  to  be  engrossed  in  the  many  practical  cares  of  the  world. 
They  had  to  earn  a  living  by  the  labor  of  their  hands.  Earning 
one's  bread  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow  is  not  conducive  to  any 
efforts  in  the  way  of  improving  literary  attainments.  Many  of 
the  ministers  did  improve,  however,  and  showed  that  improve- 
ment in  the  course  of  their  lives.  Others  did  not  advance  far  in 
the  paths  of  literary  acquirements.  The  absence  of  education, 
however,  is  to  be  regretted,  as,  if  the  men  composing  the  Confer- 
ences had  known  what  lay  before  them,  we  might  have  been  able 
to  more  fully  understand  their  position,  and  to  judge  of  their 
actions. 

While  that  no  provisions  were  made  for  the  education  of  the 
rising  generation  might  be  slightly  attributed  to  the  neglect  of 
the  ministers,  yet  the  portion  of  the  blame  attaching  itself  to  the 
Church  is  so  small  that  no  one  can  fairly  say  they  were  essen- 
tially the  cause  of  this  neglect. 

The  education  of  the  colored  population  of  the  states  in  which 
the  majority  of  the  members  of  the  African  Methodist  Church 
were  located  was  strictly  forbidden.  The  laws  framed  by  the 
various  state  legislatures  were  so  stringent,  and  the  penalties  so 


54 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


severe,  that  we  at  this  present  day  can  only  look  back  at  them 
and  shudder.    Herein  lies  the  chief  cause  of  the  lack  of  effort 

i 

upon  the  part  of  the  Church  to  increase  its  members.  No  one 
who  has  given  these  laws  even  the  most  cursory  glance  can  blame 
the  Church  for  shrinking  from  the  pursuit  of  this  cause;  besides, 
any  such  efforts  as  might  lead  to  the  spread  of  education  among 
the  colored  people,  the  great  proportion  of  whom  were  slaves, 
would  not  only  have  called  down  the  law  upon  the  heads  of  the 
offenders,  but  even,  as  we  will  afterwards  see,  have  endangered 
the  very  existence  of  the  Church  itself. 

As  for  Missionary  Societies,  Daughters  of  Conference,  Societies 
for  the  Temporal  Aid  of  the  Preachers,  they  are  all  the  outcome 
of  a  growth  in  any  Church.  These  betoken  an  increase  in  the 
finances  of  the  Church,  due  to  the  increasing  numbers  and  wealth 
of  its  members.  During  the  first  decade  of  the  existence  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  it  was  not  blessed  with 
members  great  in  number  or  rich  in  worldly  goods.  We  cannot, 
therefore,  look  upon  the  want  of  any  of  these  societies  as  a  re- 
proach to  the  Church.  As  for  the  Church  itself,  it  was  at  that 
time  mainly  in  the  condition  of  a  mission.  Its  ministers  were 
missionaries  conveying  light  and  hope  to  many  a  weary,  down- 
trodden, and  oppressed  soul.  In  the  way  of  missionary  work  it 
was,  we  might  say,  engaged  in  the  noblest  of  all  missionary 
fields — the  home  mission.  This  we  conceive  to  be  of  infinitely 
more  importance  than  any  foreign  field  which  lias  or  ever  may 
be  covered  by  any  Church  or  Society  in  the  whole  course  of  its 
history.  If  fewer  efforts  were  made  to  enlarge  the  borders  and 
expend  our  energies  abroad,  and  if  greater  efforts  were  made  to 
reach  and  bring  within  the  Christian  fold  the  large  and  ever- 
growing population  of  heathen  we  find  within  our  own  towns 
and  cities,  it  would  be  better  for  ourselves  and  the  world  gen- 
erally. 

But  while  there  are  many  things  in  the  history  of  the  Church 
during  the  first  decade  of  her  existence  which  do  not  altogether 
fit  our  ideas,  there  are  many  to  be  approved  of,  and  we  ought  in 
fairness  to  give  the  men,  who,  in  that  day  stood  in  the  forefront 
of  the  battle,  all  honor  and  praise  for  their  noble,  unselfish,  and 
unflinching  courage,  and  undaunted  bearing  and  brave  efforts  to 
bring  order  out  of  confusion.  Without  their  sacrifice,  and  with- 
out their  works,  the  Church,  in  all  probability,  would  not  have 
the  standing  she  has  to-day. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


CONFERENCES  OF  1827,  1828,  1829. 

Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  1827— Philadelphia  Conference— Petition 
from  Canada  for  Pastors— Election  of  Delegates  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  1828— Rise  of  the  Daughters  of  Conference— Extension  of  the 
Connection— Baltimore  Conference  of  1828 — George  Hogarth's  First  Ap- 
pearance— News  from  Port-au-Prince — Philadelphia  Conference — Morris 
Brown  Elected  and  Ordained  Bishop. 

rT^HE  Conference  year  of  1827  was  opened  by  the  Baltimore 
J     Annual  Conference  the  28th  of  April. 

Before  this  Conference,  Rev.  Scipio  Beanes  presented  himself 
as  an  offered  missionary  to  go  to  Hayti.  A  committee,  consisting 
of  Revs.  Morris  Brown,  Jacob  Matthews  and  William  Cornish 
was  appointed  to  inquire  into  his  qualifications,  and  after  delib- 
eration and  examination  he  was  decided  upon  as  a  "fit  person 
to  be  clothed  as  a  missionary  to  Hayti,"  whereupon  it  was  then 
resolved  that  "  Scipio  Beanes  receive  the  orders  of  a  deacon  and 
elder  in  the  Church  of  God  for  the  same  mission." 

Another  resolution  was  passed,  "  that  Samuel  Dickson,  having 
been  a  licensed  preacher  for  two  years,  be  received  as  a  member 
of  this  Conference."  This  is  another  historic  fact  against  the 
assertion  that  the  action  or  recommendation  of  Quarterly  Con- 
ference was  always  necessary.  In  this  last  case  there  is  no  allu- 
sion to  such  a  recommendation.  His  being  "licensed  for  two 
years"  is  alleged  as  the  reason  why  he  was  received  as  a  member 
of  the  Annual  Conference.  Then,  too,  we  may  look  at  the  case 
of  Scipio  Beanes,  where  the  action  taken  was  extraordinary.  He  . 
was  received  into  the  itinerant  ranks,  ordained  a  deacon,  and 
then  an  elder — all  within  one  week — for  missionary  purposes,  and 
no  action  of  the  Quarterly  Conference  was  deemed  necessary. 

Together  with  Scipio  Beanes,  Levin  Lee  and  William  Cousins 
were  ordained  deacons,  the  latter  if  "he  travels,"  and  Revs.  P.  D. 
Schureman  and  Lewis  Cork,  elders.*    There  was  a  resolution 

*The  action  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1827  resulted  in  more  than 
that  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference  in  1822,  which  decreed  that  Charles 
Butler  should  be  ordained  as  a  deacon  and  an  elder,  and  be  sent  as  a  mis- 
sionary to  Africa,  but  failed  to  execute  their  own  unanimous  resolution. 
Scipio  Beanes  was  sent  to  Hayti,  and  went. 

(55) 


56 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


passed  admitting  no  one  to  a  seat  in  this  Conference  unless  he 
was  licensed  exhorter. 

Edward  Waters  and  George  Hicks  were  selected  as  the  dele- 
gates to  represent  the  Baltimore  District  at  the  next  General 
Conference,  to  be  held  May  5th,  1828,  in  Philadelphia. 

A  month  later  the  Philadelphia  Conference  commenced  its  de- 
liberations— May  19th.  A  petition  from  the  western  part  of  New 
York  and  Canada  was  received  praying  Conference  to  send  them 
a  preacher.  After  some  reflection  the  Conference  referred  it  to 
the  New  York  District,  as  it  rightfully  belonged  to  that  jurisdic- 
tion. Samuel  George,  William  Allen.  Nathan  Tarman  and  Isaac- 
Scott  were  received  on  trial.  Austin  Jones  was  elected  to  the 
order  of  Elders,  having  been  received  on  probation  but  one  year 
previous  to  this  step.  Samuel  George  and  Walter  Proctor  were 
set  apart  for  the  order  of  deacons. 

As  the  General  Conference  of  1828  was  to  be  provided  with 
delegates,  it  was  decided  that  the  District  embraced  by  the  Phil- 
adelphia Conference  should  be  properly  represented  by  choosing 
two  from  the  West,  two  from  New  Jersey,  one  from  Lewiston, 
one  from  Bucks  County,  and  two  from  Philadelphia.  The  elec- 
tion resulted  in  the  choice  of  James  Byrd  from  Cincinnati,  O., 
and  Samuel  Johnston,  of  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  as  the  two  from  the  West; 
Samson  Peters,  of  Trenton,  and  Thomas  Banks,  of  Salem,  from 
Xew  Jersey:  Peter  Lewis,  of  Lewiston.  Del.;  Edward  Jackson, 
of  Bucks  County;  and  Clayton  Durham  and  Joseph  Cox  from 
Philadelphia. 

It  was  also  resolved  to  recommend  to  the  General  Conference 
"The  Chartered  Fund  for  the  Spread  of  the  Gospel  and  the  Re- 
lief of  the  Traveling  Preachers."  This  "Chartered  Fund"  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  was  founded  in  their  General  Conference  of  1796, 
thirty  years  prior  to  this,  and  was  now  considered  as  a  step  it 
would  l>e  wise  and  timely  to  follow  on  the  part  of  the  Philadel- 
phians.  At  this  Conference  we  hear  for  the  first  time  of  the  ex- 
istence of  that  noble  and  useful  band  of  women  called  the 
"  Daughters  of  Conference,"  who  contributed  to  Conference  the 
sum  of  eighteen  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents.  Other  individual 
friends  also  gave  small  sums,  which,  with  the  collections  of 
$133.50  from  Bethel  itself,  raised  to  meet  the  expense  of  the  ses- 
sion, swelled  the  amount  to  $153.75. 

Within  the  last  twelve  months,  as  shown  by  the  journal,  the 
Connection  had  extended  itself  into  Western  Xew  York,  taking 


Conferences  of  1827,  1828,  1829. 


in  the  cities  of  Utica,  Rochester,  and  Buffalo;  also  into  Canada, 
embracing  the  towns  of  Erie,  Niagara,  Gambia,  and  Maiden. 
At  the  last-named  place  there  were  eighty-five  members;  at 
Gambia,  six;  at  Niagara,  twenty,  and  at  Fort  Erie,  thirteen, 
making  a  total  in  Canada  West  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-four; 
while  at  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  there  were  twelve,  seven  at  Rochester, 
and  twenty-seven  at  Utica,  the  entire  total  through  this  acces- 
sion of  territory  reaching  one  hundred  and  seventy.  Of  these 
Societies,  planted  in  Western  New  York,  only  Buffalo  lias 
amounted  to  any  thing,  and  it  has  been,  up  to  the  .present, 
numerically  weak.*  There  now  exists  no  A.  M.  E.  Church  in 
Rochester.  Previous  to  1880  the  property  was  sold,  the  avails 
banked,  the  trustees  all  died  or  moved  to  unknown  parts,  the 
bank  book  was  lost,  and  no  claimant  has  been  found.  In  the 
next  year  after  this  Conference,  1828,  the  Society  in  Albany, 
New  York,  was  taken  into  the  work.  But  the  Canadian  Societies 
multiplied  till  every  important  town  in  Canada  West  was 
marked  by  one  of  our  churches;  yet  these  three,  during  eighteen 
years  of  our  missionary  labors  in  that  province,  never  became 
strong. 

As  to  the  resolution  of  the  Philadelphians  respecting  the 
"Chartered  Fund,"  it  shared  the  fate  of  a  still-born  child  from 
that  day  to  the  year  1872,  when  the  General  Conference,  sitting 
in  Nashville,  Tenn.,  formally  gave  disciplinary  form  to  it;  but  it 
has  remained  a  mere  paper  institution,  and  even  nowr  has  no 
existence. 

The  doings  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  for  1828  possesses 
such  little  interest  as  scarcely  to  be  worthy  of  record  or  notice 
here,  if  we  except  three  or  four  facts :  Rev.  Levin  Lee  succeeded 
Rev.  Joseph  M.  Corr  in  the  secretaryship  of  the  Baltimore 
Annual  Conference;  James  High,  another  layman,  succeeded 
Charles  Hacket  as  steward  of  this  Annual  Conference;  and 
Brother  George  Hogarth,  who  afterwards  distinguished  himself 
as  our  general  book  steward  and  editor  of  our  first  monthly 
magazine,  made  his  first  appearance  at  this  Conference,  and  as 
steward  of  the  Church  in  Port-au-Prince,  Hayti,  he  reported 
seventy-two  members  in  the  Mission  Church  at  that  place.  As 
Scipio  Beanes  had  been  ordained  both  deacon  and  elder  at  the 

*Its  minutes  of  1877  give  as  the  membership  only  one  hundred  and 
thirteen,  with  twenty  probationers. 


58 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


last  Annual  Conference,  and  sent  as  missionary  to  Hayti,  these 
seventy-two  members  may  have  been  the  fruits  of  his  labors. 

The  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  was  opened  on  the  6th 
of  May,  notwithstanding  the  opening  of  the  General  Conference 
had  been  fixed  for  the  5th  of  the  same  month.  Why  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  was  postponed,  in  violation  of  disciplinary  rule, 
does  not  appear;  but  it  does  appear  that,  after  the  Philadelphia 
Conference  had  been  in  session  from  the  6th  to  the  12th,  they 
adjourned  under  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  The  house  adjourn  until  a  further  period. 

Then,  after  a  lapse  of  fourteen  days,  we  find  them  meeting 
again  on  the  27th,  and  finishing  their  business  on  the  same  day. 
Hence,  we  infer,  first,  that  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference 
was  held  from  the  6th  to  the  12th;  it  then  adjourned  sine  die,  or 
till  the  rise  of  the  General  Conference;  and  second,  that  the 
General  Conference  was  opened  on  the  12th  or  13th,  and  con- 
tinued in  session  till  the  26th  or  27th,  after  which  the  brethren 
of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  resumed  the  session  and 
finished  their  business;  so  the  General  Conference  of  1828  must 
have  been  in  session  fifteen  or  sixteen  days. 

We  also  find  that  in  answer  to  the  Seventh  Question — "  Who 
have  been  elected  by  the  General  Conference  to  exercise  the 
Episcopal  Office  and  superintend  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church?"  this  answer  is,  "Richard  Allen."  The  question 
was  put  and  answered  on  the  8th  inst.,  but  we  find  written  in 
different  ink,  "and  Morris  Brown,"  which  writing  must  have 
been  done  on  the  27th,  or  some  time  immediately  after  the  rise 
of  the  General  Conference,  because  it  was  at  this  Conference  that 
Rev.  Morris  Brown  was  elected  and  consecrated  Bishop,  which 
last  act  took  place  on  the  25th  of  May,  1828. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  at  Baltimore,  on  the  10th  of  April, 
1822,  three  persons  were  named  as  candidates  for  the  office  of 
assistant  to  the  Bishop.  These  were  Revs.  Morris  Brown,  Jacob 
Matthews  and  Henry  Harden,  who  received  respectively  seven, 
nine,  and  four  votes.  Then,  in  the  same  year,  at  the  Philadel- 
phia Conference,  held  in  May,  on  the  18th,  thirty  days  subse- 
quent to  the  Baltimore  election,  the  same  three  persons  were 
voted  for,  with  the  result  of  nine  votes  each  for  Morris  Brown 
and  Henry  Harden,  and  fifteen  for  Jacob  Matthews.  The  last- 
named  had,  therefore,  a  majority  of  eight  as  a  total  over  Morris 


Conferences  of  1827,  1828,  1829. 


59 


Brown,  and  in  each  case  he  received  the  popular  vote;  yet  he 
was  rejected,  and  Morris  Brown  was  ordained  for  the  office. 

The  reasons  for  this  contradiction  and  also  opposition  to  t  he 
popular  vote  are  not  apparent  from  our  standpoint,  though  it 
may  have  been  from  the  standpoint  of  the  men  who  knew  the 
three — their  strong  points  and  their  weak  ones. 

Four  brethren  were  received  on  trial  as  itinerant  preachers: 
John  Hite,  Anthony  Campbell,  Jacob  Williams  and  Joseph  M. 
Corr.  Anthony  Campbell  was  also  ordained  an  elder  at  this 
Conference,  but  for  what  reason  the  excellent  injunction  of  the 
Apostle  was  violated  does  not  appear.  Three  of  the  traveling 
preachers  located,  James  Towsen,  Jeremiah  Beulah  and  A.  W. 
Allen. 

Three  of  the  watchmen  upon  the  walls  of  Zion  had  fallen 
since  the  meeting  of  the  last  Conference:  Charles  Corr,  the  ven- 
erable father  of  the  talented  and  pious  Joseph  M.  Corr,  who 
died  in  Philadelphia,  November  21,  1827,  aged  51  years.  He  was 
pious  in  early  life,  and  entered  the  ministry  in  his  16th  year. 
He  continued  publishing  salvation  to  dying  men  for  the  period 
of  thirty-five  years.  For  twenty-three  years  he  was  in  connec- 
tion with  the  M.  E.  Church,  during  which  period  he  resided  in 
the  state  of  South  Carolina,  city  of  Charleston;  but  as  soon  as 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  formed,  he  felt  it 
his  duty  to  join  it,  where  he  could  spend  his  strength  and  talents 
with  more  effect,  and  he  maintained  an  honorable  position  in  it 
to  the  day  of  his  death,  when  he  laid  down  his  cross  to  put  on 
his  crown. 

James  Wilson  also  departed  this  life  in  this  year,  in  the  month 
of  September,  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  after  being  twenty 
years  a  laborer  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord.  George  Miner  was 
another  minister  of  the  Gospel,  who  died  in  Steubenville,  Jeffer- 
son County,  Ohio,  after  six  years  in  the  work  of  the  ministry. 

In  the  year  1829,  and  at  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference,  we 
find,  for  the  first  time  since  the  organization  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  seat  of  Bishop  Allen  vacant, 
and  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  presiding  alone  over  the  deliberations 
of  the  Baltimore  Conference,  which  opened  on  Saturday  morn- 
ing, April  18,  1829. 

Samuel  Ente  and  Jacob  Williams  were  admitted  on  trial. 
Scipio  Beanes  and  Levin  Lee  were  admitted  into  full  connection, 
the  former  subsequently  locating.    Nathaniel  Peck  was  ordained 


60 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


a  local  deacon.  As  there  were  no  other  important  items,  it  will 
be  seen  that,  like  the  session  of  1828,  this  Conference  was  ex- 
tremely barren  of  interest  this  year.  Xot  so  with  the  Philadel- 
phia Conference.  This  was  as  fertile  in  interesting  matter  as 
the  Baltimore  Conference  was  barren  of  it. 

It  commenced  its  deliberations  on  Monday,  May  11th,  although 
it  was  organized  on  the  morning  of  the  previous  Saturday.  The 
two  Bishops  were  present,  but  whether  they  presided  singly  or 
jointly,  or  alternately,  day  by  day,  is  not  stated.  Some  wise  res- 
olutions were  made  and  carried,  one  to  the  effect  that  if  any 
traveling  preacher  should  be  impeached,  and  if  there  should  be 
no  sufficient  evidence  to  convict  him,  the  Conference  and  super- 
intendent could  send  him  out,  if  they  thought  proper,  until 
witnesses  could  be  procured,  then  he  should  be  brought  at  any 
time  to  trial  according  to  discipline.  It  was  a  perfectly  just  res- 
olution, and  gives  a  precedent  that  should  never  be  forgotten, 
and  should  be  applied  in  all  similar  cases.  They  went  further 
in  another  resolution:  "If  any  preacher  should  turn  out  any 
member  from  Society  without  trial  by  a  committee  agreeable  to 
discipline,  he  should  be  answerable  to  the  Annual  Conference, 
and  dealt  with  as  the  nature  of  the  case  might  require,  according 
to  the  judgment  of  the  Conference." 

They  also  decreed  "that  no  preacher  succeeding  another  on  a 
circuit,  shall,  under  any  circumstances,  take  up  any  case  that 
had  been  legally  decided  by  his  predecessor  except  upon  appeal." 
This  was  an  excellent  resolution,  and  showed  the  good  sense  of 
the  Conference.  It  seems  that  there  had  been  so  many  cases  of 
a  character  violating  the  principle  involved  in  this  decree,  and 
resulting  in  the  most  unhappy  consequences,  both  to  preachers 
and  people,  that  the  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown,  at  this  Conference, 
delivered  a  particular  address  to  the  traveling  preachers,  in  which 
he  exhorted  them  to  keep  "  good  rule  and  order  on  their  circuits," 
and  also  urged  them  "to  pay  particular  attention  to  the  direc- 
tions of  their  predecessors."  Another  decree  was  "that  no 
preacher  should  be  sent  out  by  its  authority  who  was  in  any  way 
involved  in  debt." 

As  for  the  correctness  of  the  position  which  the  Conference 
occupied  in  relation  to  the  indebtedness  of  preachers,  no  man  of 
correct  views  and  sound  judgment  would  undertake  to  question 
it.  If  there  is  any  man  who,  above  all  others,  ought  to  be  free 
from  debts,  it  is  the  traveling  Methodist  preacher. 


Conferences  of  1827,  1828,  1829. 


61 


That  it  was  a  difficult  thing  to  accomplish  there  is  no  doubt, 
in  consideration  of  the  small  amount  obtained  by  them  in 
the  form  of  support  or  salary,  and  because  of  this  fact  and  its 
recognition  by  the  Conference,  and  because  of  a  petition  from 
Joseph  Harper  and  William  Richardson  requesting  Conference 
"to  take  into  consideration  the  necessity  of  forming  a  sinking 
fund  for  the  aid  of  traveling  preachers,"  it  was  resolved  that 
Noah  C.  Cannon,  Joseph  Harper  and  Joseph  M.  Corr  should  be 
a  committee  to  draw  up  a  constitution  for  the  government  of  a 
sinking  fund  association. 

Respecting  the  interests  of  the  Book  Coneern,  it  was  resolved 
"that  all  east  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains  should  make  their 
return  of  moneys  once  in  six  months,  or  sooner,  if  convenient; 
at  the  end  of  the  year  the  books  remaining  unsold  should  be 
returned  to  the  stewards;"  and  again,  "that  Samuel  Johnson  in 
Pittsburgh  and  James  Kurtz  in  Cincinnati  be  the  book  stewards 
for  the  Western  country." 

Wiley  Reynolds  was  admitted  into  the  traveling  ministry  on 
probation,  and  also  ordained  a  deacon,  and  William  Richardson 
an  elder.  As  in  the  year  previous,  so  in  this,  we  have  to  record 
the  death  of  three  of  the  ministry :  Samuel  Ridley,  Thomas  Web- 
ster and  Philip  Broaclie.  The  first  named  died  May  7th,  1828, 
in  Rocky  Hill,  N.  J.  His  circuit  at  the  time  of  his  death  was 
the  Smyrna  Circuit,  which  he  had  left  to  attend  this  Conference, 
but  was  stricken  down  while  on  a  visit  to  his  family.  He  had 
been  a  traveling  preacher  for  a  number  of  years.  Thomas  Web- 
ster died  in  Philadelphia,  October  9th,  1828,  after  a  lingering  ill- 
ness of  nearly  two  years.  He  had,  as  it  appeared,  contracted  a 
cold  in  his  travels  in  the  State  of  Ohio,  having  belonged  to  the 
traveling  department  of  the  Connection  for  eight  or  nine  years. 
Philip  Broadie  died  in  Cincinnati,  0.,  on  the  9th  of  March,  1829. 
These  are  the  statements  which  the  journal  bears,  but  concerning 
the  last  named  we  have  some  additional  facts.  Brother  Owen  T. 
B.  Nickens,  a  local  preacher  of  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference,  and 
a  member  of  the  Church  in  Cincinnati,  has  furnished  further 
information  concerning  him : 

"  Rev.  Philip  Broadie,  the  first  preacher  having  charge  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  city  of  Cincinnati, 
0.,  was  a  native  of  the  state  of  Virginia,  but  when  quite  young  he 
was  taken  by  his  parents  to  East  Tennessee,  near  Knoxville,  where 
he  grew  up  to  manhood,  and  lived  for  many  years  afterwards. 


62 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


"  He  experienced  a  change  of  heart  and  made  a  profession  of 
religion,  and  united  with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  of 
which  he  continued  an  upright  and  exemplary  member  for  many 
years.  At  length,  feeling  it  his  duty,  by  the  moving  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  to  call  sinners  to  repentance,  he  applied  for  and  obtained 
license,  first  as  an  exhorter,  and  then  as  a  local  preacher. 

" After  laboring  extensively,  and  with  abundant  success,  in 
that  part  of  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  he  left  that  country,  vis- 
ited and  preached  in  many  places  in  West  Tennessee  and  the 
state  of  Kentucky,  and  at  length  landed  in  Cincinnati.  Here 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  was  organized  by  the 
lamented  Rev.  Moses  Freeman  on  the  4th  of  February,  1824,  a  few 
days  before  Brother  Broadie's  arrival.  He  immediately  united 
with  it,  and  began  his  labors. 

"As  a  local  preacher  he  continued  to  preach  and  build  up  the 
little  flock  of  Christ  after  Brother  Freeman  left,  till  the  follow- 
ing spring,  when  he  went  on  to  meet  the  Conference  in  Phila- 
delphia, There  he  offered  himself,  and  was  received  into  the 
traveling  ministry  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  was  sent  back  as  preacher  in  charge  of  the  Cincinnati  Circuit. 
In  that,  his  first  year  in  the  itinerant  service  of  the  Church, 
though  compelled  to  encounter  privations  and  hardships,  to  con- 
tend and  battle  with  foes  strong  and  wily,  he  showed  himself 
fully  competent  to  the  great  task. 

"On  almost  every  part  of  his  large  circuit  a  great  and  glorious 
revival  of  religion  broke  out,  and  continued  the  greater  part  of 
the  year,  during  which  many  souls  were  added  to  the  Church. 
In  Cincinnati  alone  the  number  was  increased  from  six  to  about 
fifty.  In  the  following  year,  owing  to  its  great  distance  from 
every  other  point  of  the  circuit,  Cincinnati  was  cut  off  and 
formed  into  a  station,  which  was  filled  by  Rev.  Thomas  Webster, 
and  then  Brother  Broadie's  field  of  labor  became  the  Urbana 
Circuit.  He  continued  his  labors  with  great  and  glorious  success 
on  that  and  other  circuits  till  the  close  of  the  year  1828,  when 
he  was  compelled  by  disease  and  approaching  dissolution  to  retire 
from  the  field  and  return  home  to  his  family  in  Cincinnati. 
There  he  lingered,  his  constitution  gradually  giving  away,  and 
his  soul  ripening  for  heaven,  till  the  latter  part  of  February,  1829, 
when  he  fell  asleep  in  death. 

"  Philip  Broadie  was  not  a  man  of  scientific  and  literary  at- 
tainments, but  his  constant  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  theological, 


Conferences  of  1827,  1828,  1820. 


88 


historical,  and  other  useful  works,  had  furnished  his  naturally 
active  and  vigorous  mind  with  a  rich  fund  of  biblical  and  useful 
knowledge.  In  the  pulpit,  though  not  learned  and  brilliant,  he 
was  solid,  plain,  practical,  and  full  of  good  sense.  Very  different 
from  many  of  the  fathers  of  our  Church,  he  loved  and  highly 
appreciated  education  and  knowledge;  not  that  he  valued  piety 
and  holiness  less.  And  though  not  regarding  these  as  paramount 
objects,  he  knew  their  worth,  and  assiduously  urged  upon  all, 
both  young  and  old,  particularly  those  just  entering  into  the 
ministry,  the  importance  of  mental  culture. 

"And  when  disease  had  so  wasted  and  worn  him  down  that  he 
could  preach  no  longer,  it  was  his  great  delight  to  call  the  young 
members  together  at  his  house  to  instruct  and  counsel  them.  The 
nearer  his  life  drew  to  a  close  the  more  fervent  he  grew  in  his 
advice  to  the  young,  more  fervent  in  prayer  that  God  would 
raise  up  fit  and  properly  qualified  young  men  to  labor  in  his 
vineyard.  Thus  lived,  prayed,  and  labored  the  pious  Philip 
Broadie,  the  first  pastor  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  in  Cincinnati ;  his  life— a  living  proof  of  his  firm  belief 
in  the  Gospel  which  he  preached ;  his  death — peaceful  and  calm, 
yet  triumphant,  a  striking  demonstration  of  the  glorious  victory 
of  a  dying  Christian." 


CHAPTER  X. 


EARLY  MISSIONARY  WORK  OF  THE  A.  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

News  from  Hayti  or  Santo  Domingo— Letter  Asking  Recognition  of  the 
Society  in  Hayti  as  a  Branch  of  Our  Connection — Pledges  to  Submit 
to  Our  Discipline — Samuel  Ente  Devotes  Himself  to  the  Santo  Do- 
mingo Fields — Ohio  Formed  into  a  Conference — Death  of  Bishop 
Allen. 

THE  Baltimore  Conference  of  1830,  like  that  of  the  preced- 
ing two  years,  presents  nothing  of  general  interest  but  the 
contents  of  two  letters  received  from  St.  Domingo.  The 
first  of  these  relates  to  their  pastor,  Rev.  Isaac  Miller.  As  the 
two  give  us  an  insight  into  the  state  of  the  work  in  that  part  of 
the  island  of  Hayti  at  that  early  period,  as  well  as  a  knowledge 
of  the  workers,  their  piety,  zeal,  and  abilities,  they  are  here 
transcribed : 

Samana,  *  December  19,  1829. 
We,  the  undersigned  Board  of  Trustees,  members  of  Bethel  Church,  at 
Samana,  doe  send  unto  you  our  Brother  in  the  Lord  and  deacon  in  the 
Ministry.  We  recommend  him  unto  you  as  A  Worthy  member  of  our 
Society  And  partner  in  tribulations,  and  as  our  redeemer  saith,  "  Wo  unto 
you  when  all  men  shall  speak  well  of  you." 

Therefore,  as  our  Saviour  himself  was  evil  spoken  of,  We  can  not  expect 
that  his  followers  Will  not  share  the  same  fate.  Our  Pastor  We  hope  you 
will  receive  as  A  gardian  Angel  over  the  flock  of  Christ,  and  While  We 
have  Seen  other  Shepherds  desert  the  flock,  our  Brother  Isaac  Miller  in 
the  Holy  War  stood  the  Storm,  and  appears  Willing  to  endever  untill  the 
end  as  A  good  soldier  as  such.  We  claim  him  as  our  Worthy,  affectionate, 
and  respectable  Pastor  in  Charge.  Samuel  Tacheb,  Exhorter. 

Charles  Irwin,  Class  Leader. 

Samuel  Ketler,  Trustee. 

Samuel  Holmes,  Trustee. 

Elijah  Johnson,  Trustee. 

Solomon  Thomas,  Trustee. 

*  Samana  is  located  in  the  Spanish  part  of  the  Island  of  Hayti,  in  the 
Peninsula  of  Samana.  The  town  is  situated  in  the  southern  part  of  the 
peninsula.  At  the  time  when  the  Society  memorialized  our  Connection, 
the  whole  island  was  under  one  government,  that  of  President  Boyer. 
Samana  is  the  most  important  peninsula  in  this  island,  contains  the 
largest  bay,  and  has  many  advantages  not  enjoyed  by  the  two  others. 
(64) 


Early  Missionary  Work  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  66 


The  second  letter  relates  more  particularly  to  their  general 
condition  as  a  Church  : 

A  Letter  from  Staint  to  Minday,*  Monday  1st,  1830. 

At  A  Annual  Conference  Held  in  San  darning  by  Brother  Jacob  Roberts, 
Preacher  in  charge,  the  conference  viewing  our  deplorable  Situation;  the 
Conference  thought  to  devise  Some  Ways  or  means  to  remedy  our  deplore- 
able  Situation,  then  entered  into  a  resolution  to  Send  two  of  our  Brother- 
ing  on  to  the  Affrican  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  North  America,  that 
are  under  the  Control  of  the  Affrican  Methodist  Bishops  and  conference, 
for  the  express  perpose  to  know  of  them,  to  know  whether  they  will 
acknowledge  us  to  be  a  Branch  of  the  said  conference,  as  we  have  unani- 
mously agreed  to  submit  ourselves  to  the  Desipolin  of  the  said  confer- 
ence that  now  is  and  may  be  devised  hear  or  hearafter. 

Dear  Brothering,  the  harvest  is  great  and  the  labers  are  few,  and  not- 
withstanding Miles  and  Waves  sepparates  our  boddies,  We  know  the  same 
God  is  hear  that  is  in  the  united  States,  for  Bethel  is  still  the  same  ;  but  not 
withstanding,  sense  we  have  arrived  in  this  dark  region  a  number  of  our 
Brothers  and  Sisters  that  bid  fare  when  we  left  the  United  States  for  old 
Cananon,  have  hung  their  harps  uppon  the  Willows,  and  has  lost  the  Song 
of  Zion  ;  but  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  God  of  Betthell,  there  is  yet  a  few 
names  in  Sardeous,  there  is  yet  a  few  names  in  Hati,  that  doe  contend  for 
the  faith  that  was  delivered  to  the  Saints ;  finely,  brothern,  pray  for  us 
that  the  word  of  the  Lord  may  run  through  this  dark  region,  and  his 
name  be  glorified  as  it  is  with  you  ;  brethern,  we  believe  you  pray  for  us  as 
we  do  for  you ;  by  faith  We  feel  the  force  of  your  prayers ;  don't  Wery  in 
Well-doing ;  brothern,  we  have  nothing  to  fear  here  but  God :  our  reli- 
gious devotions  are  granted  to  us  both  by  Church  and  State.  We  can 
worship  God  here  in  all  the  wrays  directed  in  our  disciplain,  as  we  did  in 
the  united  States ;  brothern,  we  care  not  for  the  Clambers  war  furthern  ; 
first  the  Christian  and  the  soilder  is  the  bulwark  of  contry ;  but  for  sol- 
diers We  have  a  plenty,  but  Christians  is  few.  This  letter  we  send  to  you 
by  our  beloved  Brothers  Roberts  and  Miller,  greeting,  by  the  order  of  the 
Annual  Conference,  and  we  hope  you  will  keep  them  imployed,  for  that 
will  give  you  a  verbal  statement ;  no  more  at  pressent ;  finely,  Brothern, 
pray  for  us,  tel  all  Christian  Churches  to  pray  for  us. 

Immediately  after  this  letter  was  read,  we  are  told  that  "  Sam- 
uel Ente  gave  himself  up  to  be  sent  to  Sindemingo;"  and 

*  The  true  orthography  of  this  word  is  Santo  Domingo.  It  is  the  name 
given  sometimes  to  the  whole  island,  and  is  derived  from  the  city  which 
was  founded  by  Bartholomew,  the  brother  of  Christopher  Columbus. 
The  town  or  city  of  Santo  Domingo,  from  which  this  letter  was  dated,  and 
doubtless  written,  is  the  capital  or  chief  city  of  the  Spanish  or  eastern 
part  of  the  Island  of  Hayti.  It  is  in  the  southern  part,  situated  on  the 
River  Ozama,  near  its  mouth.  It  is  the  first,  and,  therefore,  the  oldest 
European  city  in  the  Western  World.  It  is  surrounded  by  a  wall. 
5 


66 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


next,  "  By  motion,  the  Annual  Conference  received  Jacob  Rob- 
erts and  Isaac  Miller  in  the  Affrican  Connection,"  and  that  these 
brethren  would  return  to  St.  Domingo  as  soon  as  they  could  get 
their  "business  settled  and  a  passage  to  the  same." 

The  journal  of  this  year  also  tells  us  that  Jacob  Roberts  was 
to  be  set  apart  for  the  orders  of  a  deacon,  and  Isaac  Miller  for 
those  of  an  elder,  though  there  is  no  record  of  any  ordinations. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  in  May,  1827,  Brother  Scipio  Beans 
offered  himself  to  Conference  as  a  missionary  to  Hayti;  that  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  examine  into  his  qualifications, 
which  committee  decided  in  his  favor,  and  that  he  was  elected 
to  deacon's  and  elder's  orders  and  ordained,  receiving  his  desired 
appointment.  Up  to  this  date  we  find  no  record  of  the  work  of 
that  mission.  In  less  than  twelve  months  he  was  back  in  Balti- 
more, and  now  in  1829  he  is  found  a  located  man.  What  he 
accomplished  will  be  noted  in  a  succeeding  chapter. 

There  was  no  addition  to  the  itinerant  ministry  at  this  Con- 
ference. Both  Bishops  were  present  at  this  session,  which  was 
the  last  Bishop  Allen  ever  attended  in  Baltimore.  Bishop  Allen 
was  assisted  in  stationing  the  preachers  by  a  committee  appointed 
for  the  purpose,  consisting  of  Bishop  Brown,  Samuel  Todd,  and 
Edward  Waters. 

On  the  22d  of  May,  1830,  the  Philadelphia  Conference  com- 
menced its  deliberations,  with  the  two  superintendents  present. 
Joseph  M.  Corr  and  Levin  Lee,  of  Baltimore,  were  secretaries. 

Five  young  men  were  received  into  the  traveling  department  of 
the  ministry  at  this  Conference — John  Cornish,  Stephen  Stan- 
ford, Robert  Brady,  Robert  Evans,  Isaac  Miller,  Henry  Allen, 
and  Richard  Robinson,  from  Port-au-Prince.  On  account  of  this 
last-named  brother,  a  petition  was  sent  from  Port-au-Prince, 
praying  that  he  should  be  set  apart  for  holy  orders.  In  compli- 
ance with  this  petition,  Conference  ordained  Brother  Robinson 
first  a  deacon,  secondly  an  elder.  John  Cornish  was  also  ordained 
to  the  former  office,  and  Israel  Scott,  Nathan  Turman,  and  Isaac 
Miller  to  the  latter.  Isaac  Miller  is  the  same  person  who  was  at 
the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  this  year.  He  was  first 
licensed  to  preach  by  Rev.  Jacob  Roberts,  the  deacon  who  had 
charge  of  the  Church  at  Santo  Domingo  and,  through  a  vote  of 
the  "Convention,"  the  "Church  in  Samana."  This  license 
he  bore  to  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference,  and  it  was  recorded 
upon  the  journal  as  follows: 


Early  Missionary  Work  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  67 


ISAAC  MILLER,  LICP:NSE. 

Santo  Domingo,  January  the  4th,  1829. 
This  is  to  certify  that  the  bearer,  Isaac  Miller,  is  licensed  to  be  a  preacher 
in  charge  of  Samara,  *  over  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
Signed  in  behalf  of  the  Convention  of  said  Church,  so  long  as  his  life 
corresponds  with  the  Gospel,  to  be  renewed  once  a  year,  and  he  submits 
to  the  rules  of  the  Discipline  of  said  Church,  given  under  my  hand  the 
4th  of  January,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
twenty-nine. 

This  given  under  my  hand  the  23d  day  of  February,  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  thirty. 

Jacob  Roberts,  Minister. 

This  license,  with  the  two  letters  already  given  in  this  chapter, 
were  laid  before  the  Baltimore  Conference  on  May  3d,  1830,  and 
on  the  same  day  it  was  "  moved  and  seconded  that  Jacob  Roberts 
and  Isaac  Miller  be  set  apart  by  the  Annual  Conference  of  Balti- 
more District  to  receive  deacon's  orders."  It  was  also  "  moved 
and  seconded  that  Isaac  Miller  be  set  apart  to  receive  the  orders 
of  an  elder."  Both  of  these  motions  were  carried  in  the  affirma- 
tive, but  it  seems  that  neither  of  them  were  executed  by  the 
Bishops,  both  of  whom  were  present.  On  the  other  hand,  we 
find  the  previously  mentioned  fact  from  the  Philadelphia  jour- 
nal, under  date  May  29th,  1830,  that  "  Isaac  Miller  be  also  set 
apart  as  a  deacon  and  an  elder  for  Samana. "f 

Why  Jacob  Roberts  was  not  ordained,  though  the  foremost  man 
whom  the  people  of  the  Island  of  Hayti  had  sent  as  one  of  the 
commissioners  to  our  Church,  we  know  not,  nor  can  we  tell  what 
eventually  became  of  him.  We  conjecture  that  he  was  insulted 
either  by  the  action  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  in  respect  to 
himself,  or  by  the  Bishops  referring  his  ordination  to  the  Phila- 
delphia Conference.  The  inference  is  strong  that  the  former 
hypothesis  is  true,  because  the  letters  from  Samana  and  Santo 
Domingo  represent  Brother  Roberts  first,  as  a  deacon ;  secondly,  as 
licensing  Brother  Miller,  which  he  could  not  have  very  well  done 
if  he  had  not  been  a  deacon;  thirdly,  as  holding  the  Convention 
in  which  Miller  was  ordered  to  be  licensed ;  and  fourthly,  as  pre- 
siding over  the  Annual  Conference,  which  was  held  in  Santo 
Domingo,  and  which  had  ordered  the  appointment  of  the  com- 

1  Samana  is  meant. 

TThe  word  ''also"  alludes  to  the  action  of  Conference  in  the  case  of 
Brother  Richard  Robinson,  for  they  had  just  voted  to  "  set  him  apart  "  in 
holy  orders  as  a  deacon  and  an  elder. 


68 


History  of  th£  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


missioners  to  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the 
United  States.  Notwithstanding  all  these  marks  of  superiority, 
Brother  Miller  was  preferred  before  him,  and  the  Conference 
ordered  his  (Miller's)  double  ordination  ;  at  the  same  time  only  a 
single  one  was  ordered  for  Brother  Roberts. 

Among  the  parochial  reports  at  this  Conference  there  were  no 
returns  from  Ohio,  because  it  was  formed  into  a  Conference  Dis- 
trict. We  find  here,  too,  the  first  instance  of  the  preachers'  set- 
ling  for  books  with  the  general  book  steward,  and  a  total  of  profits 
is  recorded  as  being  $10.45. 

Three  local  preachers  were  admitted  on  trial  in  the  Baltimore 
Conference  of  1831,  among  whom  was  Stephen  Smith,  who  was 
also  voted  to  be  ordained  a  deacon  in  compliance  with  a  petition 
from  the  Harrisburgh  Circuit.  Two  local  preachers  had  died, 
Brothers  George  Hicks  and  Ignatius  Currey,  the  former  Septem- 
ber 8th,  1830,  the  latter  on  the  28th  of  the  same  month. 

Bishop  Brown  is  represented  as  having  preached  Bishop  Allen's 
funeral  sermon  on  Thursday  afternoon,  May  5th,  at  3  o'clock. 
Besides  these  items,  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1831  is  destitute 
of  interest. 

This  year  history  had  the  painful  and  solemn  duty  of  record- 
ing the  death  of  the  most  distinguished  man  of  color  in  the 
United  States  of  America.  That  man  was  none  other  than  the 
Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen,  the  illustrious  founder  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  the  first  descendant  of  Africa 
since  the  day  of  the  Christian  fathers  who  obtained  such  high 
authority  in  any  one  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  of  which 
we  have  knowledge.  Yet,  notwithstanding  this  important  fact, 
not  so  much  as  a  resolution  expressive  of  the  honor  due  his  char- 
acter, nor  one  expressing  condolence  with  his  bereaved  family, 
was  passed  by  the  Baltimore  Conference — nothing  given  to  the 
Church  and  to  the  world  to  show  what  appreciation  the  Baltimore 
Conference  set  upon  the  character  and  labors  of  this  illustrious 
servant  of  God  and  the  Church. 

Not  so  the  Philadelphia  Conference  for  1831,  which  was  organ- 
ized May  21st.  The  first  business  done  was  to  pass  the  following 
resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  the  funeral  sermon  of  the  Rev.  Bishop  Allen,  deceased, 
be  preached  on  Thursday  afternoon  at  3  o'clock,  in  Bethel,  and  at  the 
Union  on  Sunday,  May  29th, 


Early  Missionary  Work  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  (>0 


And  in  connection  with  the  notices  of  the  deaths  of  the  am- 
bassadors of  the  Cross  this  year,  recorded  upon  the  journal,  we 
find  the  following  of  the  first  and  chief  one,  Kt.  Rev.  Richard 
Allen  : 

The  father  and  founder  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Connection 
in  the  United  States  of  America,  who  departed  tins  life  in  the  triumphs  of 
faith,  and  in  the  full  assurance  of  a  better  resurrection,  on  the  2Cth  day  of 
March,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1831,  in  the  72d  year  of  his  useful  and 
venerable  life,  was  a  preacher  for  upwards  of  half  a  century,  and  may 
truly  be  said  to  be  the  great  apostle  of  the  African  race  in  the  United 
States.  The  extent  of  the  Connection  through  his  instrumentality,  and 
the  preachers  who  were  ordained  and  sent  out  by  him,  has  been  as  far  as 
the  western  bounds  of  Ohio,  as  well  as  north  and  south  of  Philadelphia, 
to  the  Island  of  Hayti  and  the  wilds  of  Africa,  and  thousands,  yea  myriads 
of  the  African  race  who  once  sat  in  darkness  now  dwell  in  light,  and 
though  last,  are  not  least  of  those  who  are  crowding  the  gates  of  Zion. 

He  was  born  in  Philadelphia  1760,  ordained  a  deacon  in  1799,  and  a 
Bishop  in  1816. 

Such  is  the  notice  found  of  the  lamented  Bishop  Allen.  The 
other  two  who  had  died  were  Henry  Fox  and  Stephen  Stanford, 
a  licensed  local  preacher,  who  died  on  the  Easton  Circuit  in  Sep- 
tember, 1830.  He  was  "  a  man  truly  devoted  to  God,  and  aged  fifty 
years."  Henry  Fox  died  on  August  9th,  1830,  in  the  ninetieth 
year  of  his  age,  an  "acceptable  local  deacon  in  Frenchtown"  at 
his  death.  He  is  described  as  a  "venerable  patriarch"  who  went 
down  to  his  grave  "crowned  with  glory  and  surrounded  by  a 
large  posterity" — a  man  who  "  labored  almost  to  the  last  for  the 
vindication  of  the  Gospel  of  Peace,  and  went  down  to  Jordan's 
streams  rejoicing. 

Wardell  Parker  and  Aaron  Wilson  were  admitted  on  trial,  and 
William  Henry  was  ordained  a  deacon.  Rev.  John  Cornish  and 
Rev.  Wiley  Reynolds  were  ordained  elders.  Samuel  Ente,  who 
had  devoted  himself  as  a  missionary  to  Hayti,  did  not  go  for 
some  reason,  but  located  this  year.  William  Richardson  was 
received  again  on  trial.  Joseph  Cox  and  Clayton  Durham  were 
elected  delegates  from  Philadelphia  to  the  ensuing  General  Con- 
ference. Moses  Robinson,  from  Lewiston;  Aaron  Wilson,  from 
Smyrna;  Thomas  Banks,  from  Salem,  N.  J.;  Samson  Peters,  from 
Trenton,  N.  J. ;  and  Joseph  Corr,  from  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  made  up 
the  list — seven  in  all. 

Since  1824  we  have  lost  sight  of  the  movements  of  the  New 
York  Conference,  and  not  until  1831  does  the  stream  from  its 


70 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


history  re-enter  and  flow  on  with  the  general  current.  At  this 
point  we  find  it  opened  on  the  18th  of  June  in  the  city  of  New 
York,  about  two  weeks  and  four  days  after  the  rise  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Conference.  Bishop  Morris  Brown  presided  over  its  de- 
liberations. After  this  lapse  of  time  we  find  the  following  mem- 
bers, composing  this  body:  Revs.  William  Cornish,  Jeremiah 
Miller.  Israel  Scott.  William  Richardson,  Edward  Waters,  Rich- 
ard Williams,  Samuel  Todd,  Benjamin  Croker,  Edmund  Crosby, 
Peter  Croger,  Henry  Brown,  Charles  Bohomon,  Clayton  Durham, 
John  Morris,  Fortune  Mathias,  James  Burton,  Edward  Thomp- 
son, Abraham  Marks,  Hercules  Schureman,*  George  Hogarth, 
London  Turpin,  Samuel  Brown,  John  Gustive.  Benjamin  Croger 
was  its  secretary. 

This  Conference  also  notes  the  death  of  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen 
by  a  resolution,  "that  the  funeral  sermon  of  Rt.  Rev.  Richard 
Allen  be  preached  on  the  23d  instant,  in  Bethel  Church,  at  3 
o'clock;  at  the  Wesleyan  Church,  in  Brooklyn,  on  the  27th,  and 
in  the  Macedonian  Church,  at  Flushing."  Rev.  Edward  W'aters 
appears  on  the  face  of  the  journal  as  Bishop  Brown's  assistant. 

In  1822  the  New  York  Conference  embraced  seven  charges. 
This  year  (1831)  nine  were  reported,  showing  an  increase  of  only 
two  in  nine  years.  In  1822  the  number  of  members  were  seven 
hundred  and  thirteen,  this  year  they  were  six  hundred  and  fifty- 
fiv<-.  showing  a  decrease  of  fifty-eight  members. 

Four  delegates  were  elected  to  the  ensuing  General  Conference: 
Revs.  London  Turpin,  Edmund  Crosby,  George  Hogarth  and 
Abram  Marks ;  but  aside  from  this  election  and  the  funeral  ser- 
mons of  Bishop  Allen,  the  Conference  did  nothing  which  had 
relation  to  the  general  interests  of  the  Church. 

"This  was  the  grandfather  of  the  Rev.  William  D.  W.  Schureman. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


SOME  OF  THE  FOUNDERS. 

Life  of  Bishop  Allen — His  Birth  in  a  State  of  Slavery — His  Conversion — 
He  Joins  the  Methodists— The  Way  in  Which  Allen  and  His  Brother 
Treated  Their  Master — He  Reciprocates  Their  Attention  to  His  Inter- 
ests—His  Opinion  About  the  Influence  of  Religion  on  Slaves. 

ALL  that  is  known  of  the  life  of  Rev.  Richard  Allen,  prior 
to  1816,  when  he  became  one  of  the  founders  and  the 
Bishop  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  has  been  furnished  us  by 
his  own  hand.*    We  shall,  therefore,  let  him  speak  for  himself: 

"  I  was  born  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  17(>0,  on  February  14th,  a 
slave  to  Benjamin  Chew,  of  Philadelphia.  My  mother  and  father 
and  four  children  of  us  were  sold  into  Delaware  State,  near 
Dover;  and  I  was  a  child  and  lived  with  him  until  I  was  up- 
wards of  twenty  years  of  age,  during  which  time  I  was  awak- 
ened and  brought  to  see  myself  poor,  wretched  and  undone,  and 
without  the  mercy  of  God,  must  be  lost.  Shortly  after  I  ob- 
tained mercy  through  the  blood  of  Christ,  and  was  constrained 
to  exhort  my  old  companions  to  seek  the  Lord.  I  went  rejoic- 
ing for  several  days,  and  was  happy  in  the  Lord  in  conversing 
with  many  old  experienced  Christians.  I  was  brought  under 
doubts  and  was  tempted  to  believe  I  was  deceived,  and  was  con- 
strained to  seek  the  Lord  afresh.  I  went  with  my  head  bowed 
down  for  many  days.  My  sins  were  a  heavy  burden.  I  was 
tempted  to  believe  there  was  no  mercy  for  me.  I  cried  to  the 
Lord  both  night  and  day.  One  night  I  thought  hell  would  be 
my  portion.  I  cried  unto  Him  who  delighteth  to  hear  the 
prayers  of  a  poor  sinner;  and,  all  of  a  sudden,  my  dungeon 
shook,  my  chains  flew  off,  and  'Glory  to  God! '  I  cried.  My  soul 
was  filled.    I  cried,  'Enough!  for  me  the  Saviour  died! '  Now, 

*The  original  manuscript  entitled,  "  Journal  of  Richard  Allen,"  is  in 
the  writer's  hands.  He  found  it  in  a  chest,  which  had  belonged  to  the 
Bishop,  in  possession  of  his  younger  daughter,  Mrs.  Nase  Adams.  It  was 
among  a  great  deal  of  mere  rubbish.  The  old  chest  seemed  to  have  been 
to  the  Bishop  what  a  waste  basket  is  to  a  literary  or  business  man  of 
our  times.  The  manuscript  was  written  by  his  son  Richard,  who  was  his 
amanuensis. 

(71) 


72 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


my  confidence  was  strengthened  that  the  Lord,  for  Christ's  sake, 
had  heard  my  prayers  and  pardoned  all  my  sins.  I  was  constrained 
to  go  from  house  to  house,  exhorting  my  old  companions,  and 
telling  to  all  around  what  a  dear  Saviour  I  had  found.  I  joined 
the  Methodist  Society,  and  met  in  class  at  Benjamin  Wells',  in 
the  forest,  Delaware  State.  John  Greg  was  class-leader.  I  met 
in  his  class  for  several  years. 

"My  master  was  an  unconverted  man,  and  all  the  family;  but 
he  was  what  the  world  called  a  good  master.  He  was  more  like 
a  father  to  his  slaves  than  anything  else.  He  was  a  very  tender, 
humane  man.  My  mother  and  father  lived  with  him  for  many 
years.  He  was  brought  into  difficulty,  not  being  able  to  pay  for 
us.  My  mother,  who  had  several  children  after  he  had  bought 
us,  was  sold  with  three  of  her  children.  She  sought  the  Lord, 
and  found  favor  with  him,  and  became  a  very  pious  woman. 
There  were  three  children  of  us  who  remained  with  our  old 
master.  My  oldest  brother  and  my  sister  embraced  religion. 
Our  neighbors,  seeing  that  our  master  indulged  us  with  the 
privilege  of  attending  meeting  once  in  two  weeks,  said  that  Stock- 
ley's  negroes  would  soon  ruin  him ;  and  so  my  brother  and  myself 
held  a  council  together,  and  decided  that  we  would  attend  more 
faithfully  to  our  master's  business,  so  that  it  should  not  be  said 
that  religion  made  us  worse  servants;  we  would  work  night  and 
day  to  get  our  crop  forward,  so  that  they  should  be  disappointed. 
We  frequently  went  to  meeting  on  every  other  Thursday;  but  if 
we  were  likely  to  be  backward  with  our  crops  we  would  refrain 
from  going  to  meeting.  When  our  master  found  we  were  mak- 
ing no  provisions  to  go  to  meeting,  he  would  frequently  ask  us 
if  it  was  not  our  meeting  day,  and  if  we  were  not  going.  We 
would  frequently  tell  him,  'No,  sir;  we  would  rather  stay  at 
home  and  get  our  work  done.'  He  would  tell  us, '  Boys,  I  would 
rather  you  would  go  to  your  meeting ;  if  I  am  not  good  myself, 
I  like  to  see  you  striving  yourselves  to  be  good.'  Our  reply 
would  be,  'Thank  you,  sir;  but  we  would  rather  stay  and  get 
our  crops  forward.'  So  we  always  continued  to  keep  our  crops 
more  forward  than  our  neighbors ;  and  we  would  attend  public 
preaching  once  in  two  weeks.  At  length  our  master  said  he  was 
convinced  that  religion  made  slaves  better  and  not  worse,  and 
often  boasted  of  his  slaves  for  their  industry  and  honesty. 
Some  time  after  I  asked  him  if  I  might  ask  the  preacher  to 
come  and  preach  at  his  house.    He  being  old  and  infirm,  my 


Some  of  the  Founders. 


73 


master  and  mistress  cheerfully  agreed  for  me  to  ask  some  of  the 
Methodist  preachers  to  conic  and  preach  at  the  house.  1  asked 
him  for  a  note.  He  replied,  'If  my  word  is  not  sufficient  I  will 
send  no  note.'  I  accordingly  asked  the  preacher.  He  seemed 
somewhat  backward  at  first,  as  my  master  did  not  send  a  written 
request;  but  the  class-leader,  John  Greg,  observed  that  my  word 
was  sufficient;  so  he  preached  at  my  old  master's  house  on  the 
next  Wednesday. 

"Preaching  continued  for  some  months.  At  length  Free-born 
Garrettson  preached  from  these  words:  'Thou  art  weighed  in 
the  balance  and  art  found  wanting.'  In  pointing  out  and  weigh- 
ing the  different  characters,  and  among  the  rest  weighed  the 
slaveholder,  my  master  believed  himself  to  be  one  of  that  num- 
ber, and  after  that  he  could  not  be  satisfied  to  hold  slaves,  believ- 
ing it  to  be  wrong.  And  after  that  he  proposed  to  me  and  my 
brother  buying  our  time,  to  pay  him  sixty  pounds  in  gold  and 
silver,  or  two  thousand  dollars  Continental  money,  which  we 
complied  with  in  the  year  17 — . 

"  We  left  our  master's  house,  and  I  may  truly  say  it  was  like 
leaving  our  father's  house;  for  he  was  a  kind,  affectionate,  and 
tender-hearted  master,  and  told  us  to  make  his  house  our  home 
when  we  were  out  of  a  place  or  sick.  While  living  with  him 
we  had  family  prayers  in  the  kitchen,  to  which  he  would  fre- 
quently come  out  himself  at  the  time  of  prayer,  and  my  mistress 
with  him.  At  length  he  invited  us  from  the  kitchen  to  the 
parlor  to  hold  family  prayers,  which  wre  attended  to.  We  had 
our  stated  times  to  hold  our  prayer-meetings,  and  give  exhorta- 
tions in  the  neighborhood. 

"  It  had  often  been  impressed  upon  my  mind  that  I  should 
one  day  enjoy  freedom,  for  slavery  is  a  bitter  pill,  notwithstand- 
ing we  had  a  good  master.  But  when  we  would  think  our  day's 
work  was  never  done,  we  often  thought  that  after  our  master's 
death  we  were  liable  to  be  sold  to  the  highest  bidder,  as  he  was 
much  in  debt,  and  thus  my  troubles  were  increased,  and  I  wras 
often  brought  to  weep  between  the  porch  and  the  altar.  But  I 
have  had  reason  to  bless  my  dear  Lord  that  a  door  was  opened 
unexpectedly  for  me  to  buy  my  time  and  enjoy  my  liberty. 
When  I  left  my  master's  house  I  knew  not  what  to  do,  not  being- 
used  to  hard  work — what  business  I  should  follow  to  pay  my 
master  and  get  my  living.  I  went  to  cutting  cord-wood.  The 
first  day  my  hands  were  so  blistered  and  sore  that  it  was  with 


74 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


difficulty  I  could  open  or  shut  them.  I  kneeled  down  upon  my 
knees  and  prayed  that  the  Lord  would  open  some  way  for  me  to 
get  a  living.  In  a  few  days  my  hands  recovered,  and  became 
accustomed  to  cutting  wood  and  other  hardships;  so  I  soon  be- 
came able  to  cut  my  cord  and  a-half  and  two  cords  a  day. 
After  I  was  done  cutting  I  was  employed  in  a  brick-yard  by  one 
Robert  Register  at  fifty  dollars  a  month,  Continental  money. 
After  I  was  done  with  the  brick-yard  I  went  to  day's  work,  but 
did  not  forget  to  serve  my  dear  Lord.  I  used  often  to  pray  sit- 
ting or  standing  or  lying;  and  while  my  hands  were  employed 
to  earn  my  bread,  my  heart  was  devoted  to  my  dear  Redeemer. 
Sometimes  I  would  awaken  from  my  sleep  preaching  and  pray- 
ing. I  was  after  this  employed  in  driving  a  wagon  in  time  of 
the  Continental  war — drawing  salt  from  Rhobar,  Sussex  county, 
in  Delaware.  I  had  my  regular  stops  and  preaching-places  on 
the  road.  I  enjoyed  many  happy  seasons  in  prayer  and  medita- 
tion while  in  this  employment. 

"After  peace  was  proclaimed  I  then  traveled  extensively,  striv- 
ing to  preach  the  Gospel.  My  lot  was  cast  in  Wilmington. 
Shortly  after  I  was  taken  sick  with  fall  fever,  and  then  the  pleu- 
risy. September  3d,  1783,  I  left  my  native  place.  After  leaving 
Wilmington  I  went  into  Jersey,  and  there  traveled  and  strove  to 
preach  the  Gospel  until  the  spring  of  1784.  I  then  became  ac- 
quainted with  Benjamin  Abbott,  that  great  and  good  apostle, 
lie  was  one  of  the  greatest  men  that  ever  I  was  acquainted 
with.  He  seldom  preached  but  what  there  were  souls  added  to 
his  labor.  He  was  a  man  of  as  great  faith  as  any  that  ever  I  saw. 
The  Lord  was  with  him,  and  blessed  his  labors  abundantly. 

"  He  was  as  a  friend  and  father  to  me.  I  was  sorry  when  I  had 
to  leave  West  Jersey,  knowing  I  had  to  leave  a  father.  I  was 
employed  in  cutting  wood  for  Captain  Cruenkleton,  although  I 
preached  the  Gospel  at  nights  and  on  Sundays.  My  dear  Lord 
was  with  me,  and  blessed  my. labors — Glory  to  God! — and  gave 
me  souls  for  my  hire.  I  then  visited  East  Jersey,  and  labored 
for  my  dear  Lord,  and  became  acquainted  with  Joseph  Budd, 
and  made  my  home  with  him  near  the  new  mills — a  family,  I 
trust,  who  loved  and  served  the  Lord.  I  labored  some  time  there, 
but  being  much  afflicted  in  body  with  inflammatory  rheumatism, 
was  not  as  successful  as  in  some  other  places.  I  went  from  there  to 
Jonathan  Bunn's,  near  Bennington,  East  Jersey.  There  I  labored 
in  that  neighborhood  for  some  time.    I  found  him  and  his  family 


Some  of  the  Vbunders. 


75 


kind  and  affectionate,  and  be  and  Ins  dear  wife  were  a  father  and 
mother  in  Israel.  In  the  year  1784  I  left  East  jersey  and  Labored 
in  Pennsylvania.  I  walked  until  my  feet  became  so  sore  and 
blistered  the  first  day  that  I  scarcely  could  bear  them  to  the 
ground.  I  found  the  people  very  humane  and  kind  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. I,  having  but  little  money,  stopped  at  Caesar  Wafers,  at 
Radnor  Township,  twelve  miles  from  Philadelphia.  I  found  him 
and  his  wife  very  kind  and  affectionate  to  me.  In  the  evening 
they  asked  me  if  I  would  come  and  take  tea  with  them  ;  hut 
after  sitting  awhile  my  feet  became  so  sore  and  painful  that  I 
could  scarcely  be  able  to  put  them  to  the  floor.  1  told  them  I 
would  accept  of  their  kind  invitation,  but  my  feet  pained  me  so 
that  I  could  not  come  to  the  table.  They  brought  the  table  to 
me.  Never  was  I  more  kindly  received  by  strangers  that  I  had 
never  before  seen  than  by  them.  They  bathed  my  feet  with  warm 
water  and  bran ;  the  next  morning  my  feet  were  better,  and  free 
from  pain.  They  asked  me  if  I  would  preach  for  them  the  next 
evening.  We  had  a  glorious  meeting.  They  invited  me  to  stay 
till  Sabbath  day  and  preach  for  them.  I  agreed  to  do  so,  and 
preached  on  Sabbath  day  to  a  large  congregation  of  different 
persuasions,  and  my  dear  Lord  was  with  me,  and  I  believe  there 
were  many  souls  cut  to  the  heart  and  were  added  to  the  ministry. 
They  insisted  on  me  to  stay  longer  with  them.  I  was  frequently 
called  upon  by  many  inquiring  what  they  should  do  to  be  saved. 
I  pointed  them  to  prayer  and  supplication  at  the  throne  of 
grace,  and  to  make  use  of  all  manner  of  prayer,  and  pointed 
them  to  the  invitation  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  who 
has  said,  'Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  are  weary  and  heavy  laden, 
and  I  will  give  you  rest.'  Glory  be  to  God!  and  now  I  know 
that  he  was  a  God  at  hand  and  not  afar  off.  I  preached  my  fare- 
well sermon,  and  left  these  dear  people.  It  was  a  time  of  visita- 
tion from  above.  Many  were  the  slain  of  the  Lord.  Seldom  did 
I  experience  such  a  time  of  mourning  and  lamentation  among  a 
people.  There  were  but  few  colored  people  in  the  neighborhood 
— the  most  of  my  congregation  was  white.  Some  said, i  This  man 
must  be  a  man  of  God.  I  never  heard  such  preaching  before.' 
We  spent  a  greater  part  of  the  night  in  singing  and  praying  with 
the  mourners.  I  expected  that  I  should  have  had  to  walk  as  I 
did  before ;  but  Mr.  Davis  had  a  creature  that  he  made  a  present 
to  me,  and  I  intended  to  pay  him  for  his  horse  if  I  ever  got  able. 
My  dear  Lord  was  kind  and  gracious  to  me.    Some  years  after 


70 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


I  got  into  business  and  thought  myself  able  to  pay  for  the  horse. 
The  horse  was  too  light  and  small  for  me  to  travel  on  far.  I 
traded  it  away  with  John  Huftman  for  a  blind  horse,  but  large. 
I  found  my  friend  Huftman  very  kind  and  affectionate  to  me, 
and  his  family  also.  I  preached  several  times  at  Huftman's 
meeting  house  to  a  large  and  numerous  congregation. 

"  I  proceed  on  to  Lancaster,  Pennsylvania.  I  found  the  people 
in  general  dead  to  religion,  and  scarcely  a  form  of  godliness.  I 
went  to  Little  York,  and  stopped  with  George  Tess,  a  saddler,  and 
I  believed  him  to  be  a  man  that  loved  and  feared  the  Lord.  I  had 
comfortable  meetings  with  the  Germans.  I  left  Little  York  and 
proceeded  on  to  the  State  of  Maryland,  and  stopped  at  Benjamin 
Givens,  and  I  believed  him  to  be  a  man  that  loved  and  served 
the  Lord.  I  had  many  happy  seasons  with  my  dear  friends. 
His  wife  was  a  very  pious  woman,  but  their  dear  children  were 
strangers  to  vital  religion.  I  preached  in  the  neighborhood  for 
some  time,  and  traveled  Harford  Circuit  with  Mr.  Porter,  who 
traveled  that  circuit.  I  found  him  very  useful  to  me.  I  also 
traveled  with  Jonathan  Forest  and  Levi  Coal. 

"  Decern! >er,  1784,  Genera]  Conference  met  in  Baltimore,  the  first 
General  Conference  ever  held  in  America.  The  English  preachers 
just  arrived  from  Europe.  Dr.  Coke,  Richard  Whatcoat,  and  Thomas 
Vassey.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  Episcopal  Church  among 
the  Method  ists.  Many  of  the  ministers  were  set  apart  in  holy  orders 
at  this  Conference,  and  were  said  to  be  entitled  to  the  gown;*  and  I 
have  thought  religion  has  been  declining  in  the  Church  ever  since. 

*It  is  evident  from  the  remarks  of  Richard  Allen  that  he  was  opposed 
to  a  gowned  ministry.  Tf  he  could  arise  from  the  dead  what  would  be  his 
feelings  and  his  reasonings  upon  seeing  Bishop  Brown,  Bishop  Campbell, 
Bishop  Cain,  and  Bishop  Turner  in  black  silk  gowns. 

It  is  said  "  it  adds  to  their  dignity."  True  dignity  is  found  only  in  char- 
acter, not  in  office.  Did  the  God-man  dignify  himself  with  white  surplices 
and  black  silk  gowns  ?  No  mere  man  ever  lived  who  was  greater  than  the 
apostle  Paul.  Did  he  attempt  to  increase  his  dignity  by  a  surplice  or  a 
silk  gown?  The  dignity  of  an  individual  lies  in  a  spotless  life.  The 
dignity  of  an  officer,  civil,  political  or  ecclesiastical,  lies  in  his  qualifi- 
cations for  the  office  which  he  has  been  called  to  fill.  These  qualifications 
must  be  in  his  head,  his  heart,  and  his  will;  not  in  his  dress,  which  for 
gentility's  sake  he  must  wear ;  nor  in  white  or  silk  robes,  which  for  vanity's 
sake  he  need  not  wear.  There  was  a  pamphlet  published  by  some  persons 
which  stated  that  when  Methodists  were  no  people  they  were  a  people,  and 
now  they  have  become  a  people  they  were  no  people,  which  had  often 
serious  weight  upon  my  mind. 


Softie  of  the  Founders. 


77 


"In  1785  the  Rev.  Richard  Whatcoat  was  appointed  on  Balti- 
more Circuit.  He  was,  i  believe,  a  man  of  God.  I  found  great 
strength  in  traveling  with  him,  a  lather  in  Israel.  In  his  advice 
he  was  fatherly  and  friendly.  He  was  of  a  mild,  serene  disposi- 
tion. 

"My  lot  was  cast  in  Baltimore,  in  a  small  meeting-house  called 
the  Methodist  Alley.  1  stopped  at  Richard  Mould's,  and  was 
sent  to  my  lodgings,  and  lodged  at  Mr.  McCannon's.  I  had 
some  happy  meetings  in  Baltimore.  T  was  introduced  to  Richard 
Russell,  who  was  very  kind  and  affectionate  to  me,  and  attended 
several  meetings. 

"  Rev.  Bishop  Asbury  sent  for  me  to  meet  him  at  Henry  Gaff's. 
I  did  so.  He  told  me  he  wished  me  to  travel  with  him.  He 
told  me  that  in  the  slave  countries,  Carolina  and  other  places,  1 
must  not  intermix  with  the  slaves,  and  I  would  frequently  have 
to  sleep  in  his  carriage,  and  he  would  allow  me  my  victuals  and 
clothes.  I  told  him  that  I  would  not  travel  with  him  on  those 
conditions.  He  asked  me  my  reasons.  I  told  him  if  I  was  taken 
sick  who  was  to  support  me?  and  that  I  thought  my  people 
ought  to  lay  up  something  while  they  were  able,  to  support  them- 
selves in  time  of  sickness  and  old  age.  He  said  that  was  as 
much  as  he  got,  his  victuals  and  clothes.  I  told  him  he  could  be 
taken  care  of,  let  his  afflictions  be  as  they  were,  or  let  him  be 
taken  sick  where  he  would,  he  could  be  taken  care  of;  but  I 
doubted  whether  it  would  be  the  case  with  myself.  He  smiled, 
and  told  me  he  would  give  me  from  then  until  he  returned  from 
the  eastward  to  make  up  my  mind,  which  would  be  about  three 
months.  But  I  made  up  my  mind  that  I  would  not  accept  his 
proposals.  Shortly  after  I  left  Harford  Circuit,  and  came  to 
Pennsylvania,  on  Lancaster  Circuit.  I  traveled  several  months 
on  Lancaster  Circuit  with  the  Rev.  Peter  Moratte  and  Jerie 
Ellis.  They  were  kind  and  affectionate  to  me  in  building  me 
up,  for  I  had  many  trials  to  pass  through,  and  I  received 
nothing  from  the  Methodist  Connection.  My  usual  method  was, 
when  I  would  get  bare  of  clothes,  to  stop  traveling  and  go  to 
work,  so  that  no  man  could  say  I  was  chargeable  to  the  Connec- 
tion. My  hands  administered  to  my  necessities.  The  autumn 
of  1785  I  returned  again  to  Radnor.  I  stopped  at  George  Gigers, 
a  man  of  God,  and  went  to  work.  His  family  were  all  kind  and 
affectionate  to  me.  I  killed  seven  beeves  and  supplied  the  neigh- 
bors with  meat ;  got  myself  pretty  well  clad  through  my  own 


78 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


industry — thank  God — and  preached  occasionally.  The  elder  in 
charge  in  Philadelphia  frequently  sent  for  me  to  come  to  the  city. 
February,  1786,  I  came  to  Philadelphia.  Preaching  was  given 
out  for  me  in  the  morning,  at  five  o'clock,  in  St.  George's  Church. 
I  strove  to  preach  as  well  as  I  could,  but  it  was  a  great  cross  for 
me,  but  the  Lord  was  with  me.  We  had  a  good  time,  and  several 
souls  were  awakened,  and  were  earnestly  seeking  redemption  in 
the  blood  of  Christ.  I  thought  I  would  stop  in  Philadelphia  a 
week  or  two.  I  preached  at  different  places  in  the  city.  My 
labor  was  much  blessed.  I  soon  saw  a  large  field  open  in  seeking 
and  instructing  my  African  brethren,  who  had  been  a  long  for- 
gotten people,  and  few  of  them  attended  public  worship.  I 
preached  on  the  commons  in  Southwark,  Northern  Liberties,  and 
wherever  I  could  find  an  opening.  I  frequently  preached  twice  a 
day,  at  five  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  in  the  evening,  and  it 
was  not  uncommon  for  me  to  preach  from  four  to  five  times  a 
day.  I  established  prayer-meetings;  I  raised  a  Society  in  1786 
of  forty-two  members. 

"  I  saw  the  necessity  of  erecting  a  place  of  worship  for  the  col- 
ored people.  I  proposed  it  to  the  most  respectable  people  of  color 
in  this  city;  but  here  I  met  with  opposition.  I  had  but  three 
colored  brethren  who  united  with  me  in  erecting  a  place  of  wor- 
ship— the  Rev.  Absalom  Jones,  William  White  and  Darius  Jin- 
nings.  These  united  with  me  as  soon  as  it  became  public  and 
known  by  the  elder,  who  was  stationed  in  the  city.  The  Rev. 
C.  B.  opposed  the  plan,  and  would  not  submit  to  any  argument 
we  might  raise;  but  lie  was  shortly  removed  from  the  charge. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  W  took  the  charge,  and  the  Rev.  L.  G  .  Mr. 

W  was  much  opposed  to  an  African  Church,  and  used  very 

degrading  and  insulting  language  to  us  to  try  to  prevent  us  from 
going  on.  We  all  belonged  to  St.  George's  Church — Rev.  Absa- 
lom Jones,  William  White  and  Darius  Jinnings.  We  felt  our- 
selves much  cramped ;  but  my  dear  Lord  was  with  us,  and  we 
believed  if  it  was  his  will  the  work  would  go  on,  and  that  we 
would  be  able  to  succeed  in  building  the  house  of  the  Lord.  We 
established  prayer-meetings  and  meetings  of  exhortation,  and  the 
Lord  blessed  our  endeavors,  and  many  souls  were  awakened ;  but 
the  elder  soon  forbid  us  holding  any  such  meetings.  We 
viewed  the  forlorn  state  of  our  colored  brethren,  and  saw  that 
they  were  destitute  of  a  place  of  worship.  They  were  considered 
as  a  nuisance, 


Some  of  the  Founders. 


70 


"A  number  of  us  usually  sat  on  scats  placed  around  the 
wall,  and  on  Sabbath  morning  we  went  to  church,  and  the  sexton 
stood  at  the  door  and  told  us  to  go  in  the  gallery.  He  told  us  to 
go  and  we  would  see  where  to  sit.  We  expected  to  take  the  seats 
over  the  ones  we  formerly  occupied  below,  not  knowing  any  bet- 
ter. We  took  those  seats.  Meeting  bad  begun,  and  they  wen; 
nearly  done  singing,  and  just  as  we  got  to  the  scats  the  elder 
said,  'Let  us  pray.'  We  had  not  been  long  upon  our  knees  be- 
fore I  heard  considerable  scuffling  and  loud  talking.    I  raised  my 

head  up  and  saw  one  of  the  trustees,  II  M  ,  having  hold  of 

the  Rev.  Absalom  Jones,  pulling  him  off  his  knees,  and  say- 
ing, '  You  must  get  up;  you  must  not  kneel  here.'  Mr.  Jones  re- 
plied, '  Wait  until  prayer  is  over.'  Mr.  H  M  said,  '  No,  you 

must  get  up  now,  or  I  will  call  for  aid  and  force  you  away.'  Mr. 
Jones  said,  'Wait  until  prayer  is  over,  and  I  will  get  up  and 
trouble  you  no  more.'    With  that  he  beckoned  to  one  of  the 

other  trustees,  Mr.  L  S  ,  to  come  to  his  assistance.  He  came 

and  went  to  William  White  to  pull  him  up.  By  this  time  prayer 
was  over,  and  we  all  went  out  of  the  church  in  a  body,  and  they 
were  no  more  plagued  by  us  in  the  church.  This  raised  a  great 
excitement  and  inquiry  among  the  citizens,  insomuch  that  I 
believe  they  were  ashamed  of  their  conduct.  But  my  dear  Lord 
was  with  us,  and  we  were  filled  with  fresh  vigor  to  get  a  house 
erected  to  worship  God  in.  Seeing  our  forlorn  and  wretched  con- 
dition, many  of  the  hearts  of  our  citizens  were  moved  to  urge 
us  onward ;  notwithstanding  we  had  subscribed  largely  toward 
furnishing  St.  George's  Church,  in  building  the  gallery  and  laying 
new  floors;  and  just  as  the  house  was  made  comfortable,  we  were 
turned  out  from  enjoying  the  comforts  of  worshipping  therein. 
We  then  hired  a  storeroom  and  held  worship  by  ourselves.  Here 
we  were  pursued  with  threats  of  being  disowned  and  read  pub- 
licly out  of  meeting,  if  we  did  contrive  to  worship  in  the  place 
we  had  hired;  but  we  believed  the  Lord  would  be  our  friend. 
We  got  subscription  papers  out  to  raise  money  to  build  the  house 
of  the  Lord.  By  this  time  we  had  waited  on  Dr.  Rush  and  Mr. 
Robert  Ralston,  and  told  them  of  our  distressing  situation.  We 
considered  it  a  blessing  that  the  Lord  had  put  it  into  our  hearts 
to  wait  upon  these  gentlemen.  They  pitied  our  situation  and 
subscribed  largely  towards  the  church,  and  were  very  friendly 
towards  us,  and  advised  us  how  to  go  on.  We  appointed  Mr. 
Ralston  our  treasurer.    Dr.  Rush  did  much  for  us  in  public  by 


80 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


his  influence.  I  hope  the  names  of  Dr.  Benjamin  Rush  and  Mr. 
"Ralston  will  never  be  forgotten  among  us.  They  were  the  two 
first  gentlemen  who  espoused  the  cause  of  the  oppressed,  and 
aided  us  in  building  the  house  of  the  Lord  for  the  poor  Africans 
to  worship  in.  Here  was  the  beginning  and  rise  of  the  first 
African  Church  in  America,    But  the  elder  of  the  Methodist 

Church  still  pursued  us.    Mr.  I  M  called  upon  us  and  told 

us  if  we  did  not  erase  our  names  from  the  subscription  paper, 
and  give  up  the  paper,  we  would  be  publicly  turned  out  of  meet- 
ing. We  asked  him  if  we  had  violated  any  rules  of  discipline 
by  so  doing.  He  replied,  'I  have  the  charge  given  me  by  the 
Conference,  and  unless  you  submit,  I  will  read  you  publicly  out 
of  meeting.'  We  told  him  we  were  willing  to  abide  by  the  dis- 
cipline  of  the  Methodist  Church,  '  And  if  you  will  show  us  where 
we  have  violated  any  law  of  discipline  of  the  Methodist  Church, 
we  will  submit,  and  if  there  is  no  rule  violated  in  the  discipline, 
we  will  proceed  on.'  He  replied,  "  We  will  read  you  all  out.'  We 
told  him  if  he  turned  us  out  contrary  to  the  discipline  we  should 
seek. further  redress.  We  told  him  we  were  dragged  off  our 
knees  in  St.  George's  Church,  and  treated  worse  than  heathens, 
and  we  were  determined  to  seek  out  for  ourselves,  the  Lord  being 
our  helper.  He  told  us  we  were  not  Methodists,  and  left  us. 
Finding  we  would  go  on  in  raising  money  to  build  the  church, 
he  called  upon  us  again,  and  wished  to  see  us  altogether.  We 
met  him.  He  told  us  that  he  wished  us  well,  and  that  he  was  a 
friend  to  us,  and  used  many  arguments  to  convince  us  that  we 
were  wrong  in  building  a  church.  We  told  him  that  we  had  no 
place  of  worship,  and  we  did  not  mean  to  go  to  St.  George's 
Church  any  more,  as  we  were  treated  so  scandalously  in  the  pres- 
ence of  all  the  congregation  present,  1  and  if  you  deny  us  your 
name,  you  can  not  seal  up  the  Scriptures  from  us  and  deny  us  a 
name  in  heaven.  We  believe  heaven  is  free  for  all  who  worship 
in  spirit  and  in  truth.'  And  he  said,  '  So  you  are  determined  to 
go  on.'  We  told  him,  "  Yes,  God  being  our  helper.'  He  replied, 
•  We  will  disown  you  all  from  the  Methodist  Connection.' 

"  We  believed  if  we  put  our  trust  in  the  Lord  he  would  stand 
by  us.  This  was  a  trial  that  I  never  had  to  pass  through  before. 
I  was  confident  that  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  would  sup- 
port us.  My  dear  Lord  was  with  us.  We  went  out  with  our 
subscription  paper  and  met  with  great  success.  We  had  no 
reason  to  complain  of  the  liberality  of  the  citizens.    The  first 


Some  of  the  Founder*. 


si 


day  the  Rev.  Absalom  Jones  and  myself  went  out  we  collected 
three  hundred  and  sixty  dollars.  This  was  the  greatest  day's 
collection  that  we  met  with.  We  appointed  a  com  m  it  tec  to  look 
out  for  a  lot — the  Rev.  Absalom  Jones,  William  Gray,  William 
Wicher,  and  myself.  We  pitched  upon  a  lot  at  the  corner  of 
Lombard  and  Sixth  streets.  They  authorized  me  to  go  and 
agree  for  it.  I  did  accordingly.  The  lot  belonged  to  Mr.  Mark 
Wilcox.  We  entered  into  articles  of  agreement  for  the  lot.  Af- 
terwards the  committee  found  a  lot  on  Fifth  street,  in  a  more 
commodious  part  of  the  city,  which  we  bought;  and  the  first  lot 
they  threw  upon  my  hands,  and  wished  me  to  give  it  up.  I 
told  them  they  had  authorized  me  to  agree  for  the  lot,  and  they 
were  all  satisfied  with  the  agreement  I  had  made,  and  I  thought 
it  was  hard  that  they  should  throw  it  upon  my  hands.  I  told 
them  I  would  sooner  keep  it  myself  than  to  forfeit  the  agreement 
I  had  made.  And  so  I  did.  We  bore  much  persecution  from 
many  of  the  Methodist  Connection,  but  we  have  reason  to  be 
thankful  to  Almighty  God,  who  was  our  deliverer.  The  day  was 
appointed  to  go  and  dig  the  cellar.  I  arose  early  in  the  morning 
and  addressed  the  throne  of  grace,  praying  that  the  Lord  would 
bless  our  endeavors. 

"Having  by  this  time  two  or  three  teams  of  my  own — as  I 
was  the  first  proposer  of  the  African  Church — I  put  the  first 
spade  into  the  ground  to  dig  a  cellar  for  the  same.  This  was  the 
first  African  church  or  meeting-house  that  was  erected  in  the 
United  States  of  America.  We  intended  it  for  the  African  preach- 
ing house  or  church;  but  finding  that  the  elder  stationed  in  the 
city  was  such  an  opposer  to  our  proceedings  of  erecting  a  place 
of  worship,  though  the  principal  part  of  the  directors  of  this 
church  belonged  to  the  Methodist  Connection,  and  that  he 
would  neither  preach  for  us  nor  have  anything  to  do  with 
us,  we  held  an  election  to  know  what  religious  denomina- 
tion we  should  unite  with.  At  the  election  it  was  determined. 
There  were  two  in  favor  of  the  Methodist,  the  Rev.  Absalom  Jones 
and  myself,  and  a  large  majority  in  favor  of  the  Church  of 
England.  This  majority  carried.  Notwithstanding  we  had  been 
violently  persecuted  by  the  elder,  we  were  in  favor  of  being  at- 
tached to  the  Methodist  Connection,  for  I  was  confident  there 
was  no  religious  sect  or  denomination  that  would  suit  the  capacity 
of  the  colored  people  as  well  as  the  Methodist,  for  the  plain  and 


82 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


simple  Gospel  suits  best  for  any  people,  for  the  unlearned  can 
understand,  and  the  learned  are  sure  to  understand;  and  the 
reason  that  the  Methodist  is  so  successful  in  the  awakening  and 
conversion  of  the  colored  people  is  the  plain  doctrine  and  having 
a  good  discipline.  But  in  many  cases  the  preachers  would  act  to 
please  their  own  fancy,  without  discipline,  till  some  of  them 
became  tyrants,  and  more  especially  to  the  colored  people. 
They  would  turn  them  out  of  Society,  giving  them  no  trial,  for 
the  smallest  offense,  perhaps  only  hearsay.  They  would  fre- 
quently in  meeting  the  class  impeach  some  of  the  members  of 
whom  they  had  heard  an  ill  report,  and  turn  them  out,  saying, 
k  I  have  heard  thus  and  thus  of  you,  and  you  are  no  more  a  mem- 
ber of  society,'  without  witnesses  on  either  side.  This  had  been 
frequently  done,  notwithstanding  in  the  first  rise  and  progress  in 
Delaware  state  and  elsewhere,  the  colored  people  were  their  great- 
est support,  for  there  were  but  few  of  us  free.  The  slaves 
would  toil  in  their  little  patches  many  a  night  until  midnight  to 
raise  their  little  truck  to  sell  to  get  something  to  support  them, 
more  than  their  white  masters  gave  them,  and  we  used  often  to 
divide  our  little  support  among  the  white  preachers  of  the  Gospel. 
This  was  once  a  quarter.  It  was  in  the  time  of  the  Revolution- 
ary War  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States.  The 
Methodists  were  the  first  people  that  brought  glad  tidings  to  the 
colored  people.  I  feel  thankful  that  I  ever  heard  a  Metho- 
dist preacher.  We  are  beholden  to  the  Methodists,  under 
God,  for  the  light  of  the  Gospel  we  enjoy ;  for  all  other  denomi- 
nations preached  so  high  flown  that  we  were  not  able  to  compre- 
hend their  doctrine.  Sure  am  I  that  reading  sermons  will  never 
prove  so  beneficial  to  the  colored  people  as  spiritual  or  extempore 
preaching.  I  am  well  convinced  that  the  Methodists  have  proved 
beneficial  to  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands.  It  is  to  be  awfully 
feared  that  the  simplicity  of  the  Gospel  that  was  among  them 
fifty  years  ago  is  not  now  apparent,  and  if  they  conform  to  the 
Avorld  and  the  fashion  thereof,  they  would  fare  very  little  better 
than  the  people  of  the  world.  The  discipline  is  altered  consider- 
ably from  what  it  was.  We  would  ask  for  the  good  old  way,  and 
desire  to  walk  therein. 

"  In  1793  a  committee  was  appointed  from  the  African  Church* 
to  solicit  me  to  be  their  minister,  for  there  was  no  colored  preacher 

*This  was  the  colored  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  known  as  St.  Thomas, 
in  fifth  street,  PhjJaclelphia. 


Some,  of  the  Fbunder8. 


83 


in  Philadelphia  but  myself.  I  told  them  thai  I  could  not  accept 
their  offer  as  I  was  a  Methodist.  I  was  indebted  to  the  Metho- 
dists, under  God,  for  what  little  religion  I  had,  being  convinced 
that  they  were  the  people  of  God.  I  informed  them  that  I  could 
n<>t  he  anything  else  hut  a  Methodist,  as  I  was  horn  and  awak- 
ened under  them,  and  I  could  go  further  with  them,  for  I  was  a 
Methodist,  and  would  leave  them  in  peace  and  in  love.  I  would 
do  nothing  to  retard  them  in  building  a  church,  as  it  was  an  ex- 
tensive building,  neither  would  I  go  out  with  a  subscription 
paper  until  they  were  done  with  fheir  subscription.  1  bought  an 
old  frame  that  had  formerly  been  occupied  as  a  blacksmith  shop 
from  Mr.  Suns,  and  hauled  it  on  the  lot  on  Sixth,  near  Lombard 
street,  that  had  formerly  been  taken  for  the  Church  of  England. 
I  employed  carpenters  to  repair  the  old  frame,  and  fit  it  for  a 
place  of  worship.  In  July,  1794,  Bishop  Asbury  being  in  town, 
I  solicited  him  to  open  the  church  for  us,  which  he  accepted. 
The  Rev.  John  Dickens  sung  and  prayed,  and  Bishop  Asbury 
preached.  The  house  was  called  Bethel,  agreeable  to  the  prayer 
that  was  made.  Mr.  Dickens  prayed  that  it  might  be  a  Bethel  to 
the  gathering  in  of  thousands  of  souls.  My  dear  Lord  was  with 
us,  so  that  there  were  many  hearty  amens  echoed  through  the 
house.  This  house  of  worship  has  been  favored  with  the  awak- 
ening of  many  souls,  both  white  and  colored,  and  I  trust  they 
are  in  the  kingdom." 

Then  commenced  that  systematic  series  of  opposition  on  the 
part  of  certain  elders  of  St.  George's  Church,  which  resulted  in 
the  secession  of  the  great  body  of  the  colored  members  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  in  Philadelphia,  also  the  regions  round  about,  and 
the  organization  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 
1816,  at  which  time  Rev.  Richard  Allen  was  elected  and  conse- 
crated its  first  Bishop.  Thence,  till  the  day  of  his  death,  history 
regards  him,  not  only  as  the  founder,  but  also  the  master-spirit 
of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Let  us,  therefore, 
look  at  him  from  that  event  till  the  hour  when  his  earthly  career 
was  finished. 

After  the  organization  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  Bishop  Allen  found  it  necessary,  not  only  to  provide  for 
the  churches  already  under  his  care,  but  also  to  plan  and  mature 
measures  for  the  extension  of  the  Connection,  and  the  good  gov- 
ernment of  the  whole,  at  the  same  time  that  he  had  to  provide 
for  his  growing  family.    But  as  he  kept  no  private  journal  of  his 


84 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


official  transactions,  much  of  what  he  did  as  the  leader  of  the 
movements  of  the  Connection  we  are  compelled  to  look  for  in 
journals*  of  the  several  Annual  Conferences,  the  minutes  of  the 
Quarterly  Conferences,  and  extra  meetings  of  the  official  hoard 
of  Bethel  Church  in  Philadelphia. 

In  the  latter  he  presided  week  after  week  and  month  after 
month,  from  1816  until  Octoher  6th,  1830,  and  in  the  New  York, 
Philadelphia  and  Baltimore  Annual  Conferences  until  the  sum- 
mer of  the  same  year.  He  was  the  pastor  of  Bethel,  in  Philadel- 
phia, as  well  as  the  Bishop  of  the  Connection,  nearly  all  the  time 
of  his  life,  dating  from  1816.  This  was  business  enough  for  one 
man,  as  every  one  will  admit  who  has  ever  seen  the  mammoth 
congregation  of  that  church;  and  what  it  is  now,  with  a  little 
modification,  it  has  ever  been,  if  the  Conference  journals  are  to 
he  credited.  He  was  perpetually  employed  in  giving  advice 
about  the  planning  of  new  circuits,  and  the  founding  of  the  indi- 
vidual churches  which  constituted  them. 

The  Bishop's  concern  for  the  benefit  of  his  oppressed  kinsmen, 
according  to  the  flesh,  was  not  confined  to  religious  matters.  He 
did  as  much  as  he  could  for  their  secular  improvement.  In  a 
letter  which  was  written  at  his  instance  to  a  Mr.  Townsend,  of  Bal- 
timore (a  white  person),  whose  influence  he  solicited,  he  asked 
him  to  procure  a  large  number  of  colored  boys,  and  send  them 
to  Philadelphia,  in  order  that  they  might  be  apprenticed  to  learn 
the  art  of  manufacturing  nails.  Thoroughly  "'anti-slavery,"  his 
house  -was  never  shut  ''against  the  friendless,  homeless,  penniless 
fugitives  from  the  "House  of  Bondage." 

The  testimony  of  that  pious  man,  the  Rev.  Walter  Proctor, 
-ays,  the  "house  of  Bishop  Allen  was  a  refuge  for  the  oppressed, 
and  a  house  for  the  refugee  from  American  oppression."  The 
same  truthful  witness  informs  us  that  "  he  was  a  man  of  most 
active  benevolence ;  he  lived  to  be  good  and  to  do  good." 

This  benevolence  he  exercised  in  more  than  one  direction. 
He  was  promised  a  salary  of  $500  per  year.  This  he  never  re- 
ceived. All  that  he  ever  did  receive  was  the  sum  of  $80,  not  per 
year,  but  for  all  his  services.  The  balance  due  him  in  this  direc- 
tion he  bequeathed  to  the  church.    "  I  have,"  says  Brother  Proc- 

*  These  documents  afford  very  scant  information  concerning  this  ener- 
getic man.  All  have  been  examined  that  could  be  found  in  Philadelphia, 
Baltimore  and  New  York,  which  embraced  the  field  of  his  personal  oper- 
ations. 


Some  of  the  fbunders. 


85 


tor,  "a  knowledge  of  $1,400  being  so  bequeathed  or  given  by  him 
to  the  church,  at  one  time,  when  the  house  of  worship  was  sold 
and  bought  by  us.  This  claim  of  81,400  against  Bethel  in  Phila- 
delphia, which  the  Bishop  bad  served  as  a  pastor,  is  confirmed  by 
tin-  testimony  of  .Jonathan  Tudas,  one  of  the  mosl  intelligent 
of  Bishop  Allen's  lay  advisers.  At  one  time  the  Bishop  loaned 
Bethel  th  e  sum  of  $4,000.  At  another  time  his  claims  against 
Bethel  amounted  to  $6,300,  and  once  $11,700.  At  the  time  thai 
Robert  Green  sold  it.  Mr.  Allen  bought  it  in  forthe  congregation 
at  the  sum  of  $10,500." 

The  above  statements,  made  by  intelligent  and  active  ad- 
visers of  Bishop  Allen,  proved  that  he  was  of  more  use  to  the 
mother  church  than  a  mere  pastor— that  while  bis  tongue  in- 
structed her,  his  purse  was  also  furnishing  her  witb  mate- 
rial aid. 

Bishop  Allen  was  a  father  of  six  children— four  sons  and  two 
daughters— namely.  Richard,  Peter,  John,  Sarah,  Ann  and  James. 
These  he  educated  as  well  as  circumstances  allowed.  These 
circumstances  were  two-fold — the  opportunities  for  educating 
colored  children  at  that  time,  and  the  Bishop's  own  literary  ac- 
quirements. That  the  Bishop  made  good  use  of  these  opportun- 
ities, as  few  as  they  were,  is  manifest  in  the  fact  that  in  1818-19, 
the  secretary  of  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  was  his  bod 
Richard,  then,  as  we  have  elsewhere  shown,  a  lad  of  about  twelve 
or  fourteen  years  of  age.  The  penmanship,  the  style,  and  method 
of  the  journal  compares  favorably  with  the  best  records  now 
kept  by  our  secretaries,  and  better  than  the  greater  number  of 
his  immediate  successors,  every  one  of  whom  have  been  men 
of  adult  age. 

His  son  John,  who  lived  several  years  on  the  island  of  Hayti, 
was  skilled  in  the  French  language,  and  could  translate  it  with 
great  ease  and  elegance.  He  also  spoke  the  Spanish  language.  In 
his  latter  years  the  Bishop  carried  on  a  boot  and  shoe  store,  which 
trade  and  business  he  had  learned  in  the  earlier  part  of  his  life. 
He  retired  from  this  business  two  or  three  years  prior  to  his 
death,  at  which  time  his  estate  was  worth  between  thirty  and 
forty  thousand  dollars,  all  of  which  was  accumulated  by  his  own 
intellect,  industry  and  thrift. 

The  Bishop  was  a  man  of  mixed  blood,  his  mother  being  a 
mulatto  and  his  father  a  pure  African;  this  gave  his  complexion 
a  soft  chestnut  tint,  as  is  shown  in  the  fine  oil  portrait  of  him, 


86 


Hi  story  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Chord,. 


now  in  possession  of  his  oldest  daughter,  Mrs.  Sarah  Wilkins. 
The  expansive  forehead  and  the  fulness  of  the  lower  eyelids  in- 
dicate expansiveness  of  intellect  and  a  ready  command  of  lan- 
guage. 

"  When  he  lived  he  adorned  the  Christian  life  and  profession; 
when  he  died  he  was  ready  and  prepared  to  go,  having  faithfully 
accomplished,  as  a  hireling,  his  day.  Thus  ended  the  earthly 
career  of  one  of  the  most  useful  lives  of  modern  times. 

':We  ought  to  consider  Richard  Allen  not  a  whit  behind  the 
chief  of  protestant  reformers,  except  in  the  matter  of  literary 
attainments." 

The  above  quoted  passages  are  taken  from  a  private  letter  ad- 
dressed to  the  writer  by  Rev.  Walter  Proctor,  who  was  an  eye  and 
ear  witness  of  the  sayings  and  doings  of  Bishop  Allen,  and  who, 
for  upwards  of  fifteen  years,  enjoyed  the  intimate  acquaintance 
of  that  eminent  servant  of  God.  None  of  his  coadjutors  knew 
him  better,  none  loved  him  more  sincerely. 

There  can  be  no  more  appropriate  plan  to  speak  of  the  consort 
of  the  first  Bishop  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  than  in  connection 
with  her  eminent  husband — though  her  death  occurred  in  1850, 
nineteen  years  later.  An  obituary  notice  was  prepared  at  the 
time,  which  we  give  in  full : 

MRS.  SARAH  ALLEN. 

CONSORT  OF  KT.  REV.   RICHARD  ALLEN. 

In  the  course  of  events  brought  about  by  the  dispensation  of  an  all-wise 
God,  the  Church,  since  the  last  sitting  of  its  Annual  Conference  in  this 
district,  have  been  called  to  mourn,  and  with  sorrowing  hearts  to  lament, 
the  death  of  Mrs.  Sarah  Allen,  consort  of  the  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen, 
Bishop  and  founder  of  the  African  M.  E.  Church.  Whilst  it  is  true  that  we 
should  not  mourn  as  those  who  have  no  hope,  being  assured  that  the  right- 
eous have  hope  in  their  death,  yet  it  is  by  no  means  criminal  or  unchris- 
tian to  mourn  the  loss  of  those  we  love.  And  the  more  so  when  those  are 
called  to  the  spirit  land  with  whom  we  have  been  identified  in  matters  of 
moment,  trial,  and  conflict. 

The  subject  of  this  notice  was  one  endeared  to  us  by  every  tie  which 
could  link  one  being  with  another,  and  as  often  as  we  look  back  upon  the 
early  history  of  our  Church,  memory,  that  monitor  of  time  past,  clinches 
upon  our  affections  emotions  too  pungent  and  deep  for  expression.  We  can 
only  say,  "80  seemeth  it  good  and  right,  Oh  Lord!  " 

Thankful  we  take  the  cup, 
Prepared  and  mingled  by  thy  skill. 

In  the  death  of  Sister  Allen  the  Church  has  not  only  lost  a  bright  orna- 


Some  <>/  the  Poimders, 


87 


ment— a  jewel,  precious —a  relit!  of  her  formation  when  she  was  first  seen 
to  glide  from  the  stormy  element  of  oppression,  but  has  indeed  lost  a  pillar 
from  the  building,  a  mother  in  Israel.  On  Thee  may  we  not  cry,  "Help, 
Lord,  for  the  godly  man  ceaseth."  Our  aged  and  dear  mother  was  a  native 
of  Virginia,  Isle  of  Wight  county,  and  came  into  the  city  of  Philadelphia 
to  reside  at  an  early  age,  being  not  more  than  eight  years  old.  She  was 
united  in  marriage  to  Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Allen  about  the  year  1800.  From 
that  period  she  has  been  identified  as  one  of  those  noble  spirits  who,  with 
her  husband,  our  venerable  father  in  God,  battled  mightily  for  the  estab- 
lishing of  our  beloved  Zion.  It  might  be  well  said  that  the  Church,  when 
contending  with  a  powerful  adversary,  had  no  more  able  advocate  than 
Sister  Allen.  A  staff'  to  her  husband,  and  a  counselor  and  the  encourager 
of  the  pioneers  who,  with  the  Bishop,  labored  hard  to  bring  the  Church 
out  of  her  captivity,  and  throw  oft  her  oppressors.  Her  name  will  ever  he 
associated  and  endeared  to  the  Church  with  those  of  Allen,  Coker,  Cham- 
pion, Tapsico,  Webster,  Waters,  Brown,  and  others,  founders  and  fathers 
of  this  branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 

Mother  Allen  lived  to  a  good  old  age,  being  eighty-five  years  when  she 
was  called  from  labor  to  reward.  This  event  took  place  in  the  city  of  Phil- 
adelphia on  the  16th  day  of  July,  1849,  at  the  residence  of  her  daughter, 
Mrs.  Ann  Adams. 

Reader,  let  us  pause  and  think  of  her  whose  loss  the  Church  mourns, 
and  whose  departure  from  the  land  of  the  living  has  thrown  the  mantle  of 
sorrow  over  this  community.  Mark  the  upright  man,  says  God,  for  his 
end  is  peace. 

We  have  known  our  sister  long.  We  have  cherished  the  liveliest  senti- 
ments of  regard  towards  her;  never  have  we  known  her  to  be  remiss  in  a 
single  duty  which  claimed  her  attention.  To  the  young  she  was  a  faithful 
counselor;  the  gay,  the  giddy,  the  careless  and  heedless  met  in  Mother 
Allen  one  who  was  faithful  to  advise  even  unto  tears.  The  aged  met  a  friend 
sincere  and  true,  without  ostentation,  but  simple  minded,  frank  and  affec- 
tionate. To  Mother  Allen  all  had  accet-s,  the  high,  the  low,  the  rich  and 
poor.  The  friendless  and  the  outcast  found  in  her  one  unto  whom  they 
could  pour  out  their  complaints,  and  tell  their  sorrows  o'er.  The  poor, 
flying  slave,  trembling  and  panting  in  his  flight,  has  lost  a  friend  not 
easily  replaced  ;  her  purse  to  such,  as  well  as  others,  was  ever  open,  and 
the  fire  of  those  eyes,  now  closed  in  death,  kindled  with  peculiar  bright- 
ness as  she  would  bid  them  God  speed  to  the  land  of  liberty,  where  the 
slave  is  free  from  his  master,  and  the  voice  of  the  oppressor  is  no  longer 
heard. 

Her  house  was  the  resort  of  the  brethren  who  labored  in  the  ministry  ; 
when  weary  and  worn  with  the  burden  of  duty,  they  found  a  resting  place 
indeed.  Long  will  her  motherly  counsel  be  remembered  by  our  itinerant 
and  local  brethren,  and  long  will  it  be,  yea,  ever,  that  the  tones  of  her 
well  known  voice  shall  sound  upon  the  ear  of  the  ministers  of  our  Church. 

As  it  regards  her  Christian  profession,  we  may  say  that  such  was  the 
reflection  thrown  from  it  that  no  one  could  for  a  moment  question  or 


88 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


doubt  but  that  she  walked  with  God.  The  power  of  which  was  felt  as 
often  as  she  opened  her  mouth  either  to  rebuke,  to  counsel,  or  encourage. 
In  the  Church  truly  a  void  has  been  made ;  a  great  light,  indeed,  has  been 
blown  out ;  and  Zion,  our  beloved  Zion,  will  long  mourn  the  loss  of  Mother 
Allen. 

In  conclusion,  we  can  only  say,  Fare  thee  well,  sister, 

Thy  happy  spirit  hath  winged  its  way, 
Far,  far  away. 

Now,  even  now,  thou  art  happier  far  than  any  of  earth's  sons  whose  pil- 
grim journey  ends  not  yet.  We  bid  thee  farewell.  We  hope  to  meet  thee 
yet,  where  parting  can  no  more  take  place  ;  we  hope  to  walk  with  thee  in 
white,  and  in  the  upper  sanctuary  commingle  once  again  and  forever  our 
voices  in  anthems  of  praise  to  Him  who  hath  loved  us  and  given  himself 
for  us.    Fare  thee  well,  sister.  Wm.  P.  Quinn, 

N.  C.  H.  Cannon, 
J.  G.  Bkulah, 
Israel  Scott, 
M.  Brown, 
J.  Cornish. 

The  churches  in  the  city  of  Baltimore  were  planted  by  the 
Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  of  whose  life  and  character  it  will  be  proper 
at  this  point  to  give  an  outline. 

The  Rev.  Daniel  Coker  was  born  on  the  eastern  shore  of 
Maryland,  in  a  state  of  slavery,  and  subsequently  ran  off  from 
his  owner  to  the  state  of  New  York,  where  he  so  conducted  him- 
self as  to  secure  the  confidence  of  the  M.  E.  Church  in  the  city 
of  New  York.  He  became  an  ordained  preacher  under  Bishop 
Asbury.  Sometime  after  he  left  New  York  and  went  to  the  city 
of  Baltimore,  where  he  concealed  himself  until  his  friends  had 
purchased  his  freedom.  The  chief  of  these  friends  were  Watts, 
Hackett,  Murray  and  Hilliard.  The  Rev.  Michael  Coate,  an 
elder  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  was  also  one  among  the  chief  ones  who 
secured  the  liberty  of  Brother  Coker.  This  reverend  gentleman 
died  in  1814.  Toward  him  Brother  Coker  always  cherished 
feelings  of  the  deepest  gratitude. 

The  following  was  learned  from  the  lips  of  a  half-brother  of 
Brother  Coker,  and  who  in  1852  was  living  in  tne  state  of  New 
Jersey,  in  the  village  of  Greenwich: 

He  also  bore  the  name  of  Daniel  Coker,  to  cover  his  escape 
from  the  slave-hunter.  He  said  that  his  brother,  the  subject  of 
this  biographical  sketch,  was  the  son  of  a  white  woman,  whose 


Some  of  the  Founders. 


89 


name  was  Susan  Coker,  by  a  slave  whose  name  was  Daniel. 
Susan  was  an  English  woman,  and  was  living  in  the  family  of 
Isaac's*  master.  She  had  a  child  by  her  first  husband,  whose 
name  was  Daniel;  his  father's  surname  was  Coker;  of  course,  he 
bore  it.  Daniel's  real  name  was  Isaac  Wright.  When  Daniel 
Coker  resolved  to  escape  from  the  slavery  in  which  he  was  held, 
to  cover  his  escape  he  also  took  the  name  of  his  white  hall- 
brother,  and  became  Daniel  Coker,  which  name  he  ever  after- 
wards bore.  He  obtained  the  elements  of  his  education  through 
the  perverseness  of  his  young  master,  who  w.ould  not  go  to 
school  unless  his  parents  would  allow  Daniel  to  accompany  him. 
So  while  Daniel  was  his  attendant  at  school,  he  busied  himself 
in  learning  to  read,  write,  and  cipher.  Of  his  knowledge  thus 
acquired  he  made  an  excellent  use,  for  he  educated  scores  of 
young  men  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  two  of  whom  were  Mr. 
Clarke,  of  Little  York,  Pa.,  and  Rev.  William  Douglas,  the  ♦ 
talented  and  well  educated  pastor  of  St.  Thomas'  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  and  the  author  of 
a  volume  of  sermons  and  a  history  of  his  own  pastorate,  entitled 
"Annals  of  St.  Thomas'  Church." 

We  have  no  account  of  his  conversion.  He  is  said  to  have 
been  a  man  of  uncommon  talent,  and  he  possessed  more  informa- 
tion on  all  subjects  than  usually  fell  to  the  lot  of  colored  men 
of  his  day.  Those  living  who  had  the  happiness  of  hearing  him, 
inform  us  that  he  was  a  powerful  and  eloquent  preacher.  It  was 
through  his  counsel  that  our  people  withdrew  from  the  M.  E. 
Church,  and  by  his  agency  were  formed  into  an  African  M.  E. 
Church.  He  was  not  only  their  leader  in  this  great  movement, 
but  also  their  able  and  successful  defender  against  the  slanderous 
attacks  of  their  enemies. 

Among  the  local  ministers  of  Sharp  Street  Church,  in  Balti- 
more, he  was  pre-eminently  useful,  and  during  his  connection 
with  that  church  laid  a  plan  of  finances  which  resulted  in  an 
improvement  of  the  original  property  purchased  to  the  amount 
of  $3,000.  For  several  years  he  acted  the  part  of  a  school-teacher, 
and  his  success  in  this  important  field  of  usefulness  was  such 
that,  whereas  he  opened  the  school  with  about  seventeen  scholars, 
when  he  left  it,  there  were  as  many  as  one  hundred  and  fifty. 

He  was  also  a  writer  of  respectable  attainments,  especially 


*The  real  name  of  this  informant. 


90 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


when  we  take  into  consideration  the  circumstances  under  which 
he  was  placed — I  mean  the  disadvantages  under  which  he  labored 
in  an  educational  point  of  view.  The  proof  of  the  ability  of 
Brother  Coker  in  this  particular  may  be  seen  in  a  little  book 
which  he  wrote  on  the  Slavery  Question,  and  which  was  pub- 
lished in  the  city  of  Baltimore  in  1810.  The  title  page  runs  in 
the  following  language : 

A  Dialogue  Between  a  Virginian  and  an  African  Minister. 

Written  by  the  Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  a  Descendant  of  Africa,  Minister  of 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Baltimore.  Humbly 
Dedicated  to  the  People  of  Color  in  the  United 
States  of  America. 

This  little  volume  contains  about  forty-three  pages.  After  the 
Slavery  argument  is  finished,  the  writer  gives  a  "  List  of  the 
Names  of  the  Descendants  of  the  African  Race  Who  Have  Given 
Proofs  of  Talents,"  "A  List  of  African  Churches,"  "A  List  of  the 
Names  of  African  Ministers"  who  were  in  holy  orders,  and  "A 
List  of  the  Names  of  African  Local  Preachers"  at  that  time  in 
the  United  States.  The  writer  also  informs  us  that  the  number  of 
African  Methodists  in  the  United  States  at  that  period  was  31,884. 
He  was,  moreover,  a  man  equal  to  the  emergency  of  the  hour, 
and  a  real  hero  in  times  of  great  public  trials  and  danger.  This 
feature  of  his  character  is  seen  in  bold  relief  by  the  following 
testimony  of  the  talented  author  of  a  little  work  on  Liberia, 
entitled  "The  New  Republic;"  for  our  readers  must  be 
informed  that  the  subject  of  our  historical  sketch  left  this  country 
in  1820,  among  the  first  band  of  emigrants,  to  find  a  home  and 
untrammeled  freedom  in  Africa.  The  diseases  incident  to  that 
climate  soon  laid  the  government  officers  and  colonial  agent  in 
their  graves : 

What  a  pall  hung  upon  the  prospects  of  the  feeble  remnant.  Their 
leaders  fallen,  without  a  guide,  or  counsel,  or  protection,  they  were  like 
sheep  without  a  shepherd  in  the  howling  wilderness ;  but  He  who  led  his 
people  like  a  flock  by  the  hand  of  Moses  and  Aaron,  gave  power  to  the 
faint,  and  to  them  that  had  no  might  he  increased  strength. 

Before  his  death  Dr.  Crozer  committed  his  agency  into  the  hands  of  one 
of  the  leading  emigrants,  Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  a  colored  clergyman.  Find- 
ing himself  at  the  head  of  affairs  in  a  most  perilous  crisis,  and  feeling  the 
need  of  advice,  he  determined  upon  going  to  Sierra  Leone  as  soon  as  the 
condition  of  the  sick  would  allow. 


/  v '  f  y  //////  /  "/'A  i 


ONE  OF  THE  FOUNDERS  OF  EHB  A.M.B.OHUHCH 


Some  of  the  Founders. 


At  that  hour,  with  the  sick,  the  dying,  and  the  dead  about  him,  en- 
trusted with  new  responsibilities  connected  with  the  welfare  of  a  large 
body  of  people,  and  the  preservation  of  a  large  amount  of  property,  with 
no  one  to  counsel  or  befriend  him,  how  does  this  new  workman  on  t  in- 
foundations  of  a  new  republic  stand  out  to  light?  Does  he  flag,  or  flinch, 
or  fear?  Alone  lie  stands,  with  a  dark  present  and  a  darker  future;  but 
does  he  draw  fearfully  and  timidly  back?  His  language  in  that  night  of 
toil  is  trulv  sublime:  "  We  have  met  trials;  we  are  but  a  handful;  our 
provisions  are  running  low  ;  we  are  in  a  strange,  heathen  land  ;  we  have 
not  heard  from  America,  and  know  not  whether  provisions  or  people  will 
be  sent  out;  yet,  thank  the  Lord,  my  confidence  is  strong  in  the  veracity 
of  his  promises.  Tell  my  brethren  to  come  ;  fear  not;  this  land  is  good  ; 
it  only  wants  men  to  possess  it.  I  have  opened  a  little  Sabbath-school  tor- 
native  children.  Oh,  it  would  do  your  hearts  good  to  see  the  little  naked 
sons  of  Africa  around  me.  Tell  the  colored  people  to  come  up  to  the 
help  of  the  Lord.  Let  nothing  discourage  the  Society  or  the  colored 
people." 

Herein  do  we  not  read  the  words  of  a  stout-hearted  Christian  hero?  He 
daunted!  He  fearful!  He  dismayed!  No!  The  work  must  be  done, 
though  hundreds  fall  in  the  outset.  He  sees  that  Africa  must  be  chris- 
tianized and  Civilized,  and  stands  boldly  relying  upon  the  promises  of  God 
that  it  will  be  done. 

Such  is  the  interesting  light  in  which  Daniel  Coker  is  placed 
by  the  hand  of  history.  The  historian  quotes  Mr.  Coker's  own 
words,  for  they  were  addressed  by  Mr.  Coker  himself  to  the 
friends  of  benighted  Africa.  •  And  it  is  to  this  work  of  his  in 
Africa — this  gathering  of  "the  little  naked  sons  of  Africa"  into 
a  Sunday-school  around  him — that  Bishop  Allen  alludes  when, 
in  the  first  revised  edition  of. the  Discipline,  he  tells  us  that 
"  God  has  spread  the  work,  through  our  instrumentality,  upon  the 
barren  shores  of  Africa." 

Some  time  after  Rev.  Mr.  Coker  gave  up  the  command  of  the 
colony  into  the  hands  of  the  officers  appointed  by  the  Society  at 
Washington,  he  emigrated  from  Liberia  to  the  British  Colony 
of  Sierra  Leone.  There  he  planted  a  church  and  reared  a  fam- 
ily. The  building  in  which  his  congregation  worshipped  is  still 
standing  (1852) ;  it  is  built  of  stone,  and  is  one  of  the  largest  in 
the  city  of  Freetown.  Beside  the  pulpit  is  a  marble  tablet  bear- 
ing a  memorial  of  his  life  and  death.  Two  of  .his  sons  grew  up 
to  manhood.  One  of  them  became  a  successful  trader  with  the 
natives  of  the  interior,  and  at  his  death  endowed  his  father's 
church;  the  other  was  living  as  late  as  1861,  and  was  then  in- 
spector of  police  at  Sierra  Leone. 


02 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Though  not  faultless,  Daniel  Coker  was  one  of  the  most  intel- 
ligent, active  and  heroic  spirits  that  opened  the  glorious  career 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  The  oldest  circuits  in  the  Baltimore 
District  were  cut  out  and  the  churches  planted  by  him.  "Peace 
to  his  ashes!"  Honor  to  the  memory  of  the  man  whose  heroic 
labors  have  shed  additional  lustre  upon  our  ecclesiastical  history, 
and  through  whom  alone,  up  to  1863,  we  have  dared  to  say.  "God 
has  -picad  the  work,  through  our  instrumentality,  upon'  the 
barren  shores  of  Africa."  God  grant  that  we  may  meet  him  in 
that  better  and  brighter  land,  where  the  redeemed  of  the  Lord 
are  made  perfect  through  the  blood  of  the  Lamb, 

In  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1823,  in  answer  to  the  question. 
"  Who  have  died  this  year9"  the  reply  included,  "Don  Carlos 
Hall,  steward  of  the  Annual  Conference.  He  died  on  the  18th  of 
March,  after  a  long  and  serious,  as  well  as  a  lingering  illness. 
He  died  in  the  full  triumphs  of  faith,  in  the  56th  year  of  his 
age.  and  much  lamented  by  the  Conference,  by  the  Church,  and 
by  his  family  and  his  friends  in  general.  It  will  be  remembered 
that  Brother  Hall  was  a  layman,  and  distinguished  himself  in 
the  General  Conference,  as  also  in  all  the  early  meetings  of  the 
Baltimore  Annual  Conference. 

Don  Carlos  Hall  was  amongst  the  first  founders  of  the  A.  M. 
E.  Church  in  Baltimore.  lie  and  the  He  v.  Daniel  Coker  were 
unceasing  in  their  efforts  to  procure  a  place  where  they  and  their 
followers  could  worship  God  in  spirit  and  in  truth.  They  first 
assembled  in  Don  Carlos  Hall's  house,  and  there  held  their 
prayer  and  class-meetings,  also  their  meetings  for  ecclesiastical 
deliberations.* 

The  class-meetings  were  held  there  until  his  death  in  1823, 
and  for  years  after.  He  held  the  office  of  both  steward  and 
trustee  as  long  as  he  lived.  His  charity  and  benevolence  can  be 
told  by  those  who  are  living  witnesses:  the  old  ministers  also 
can  bear  witness  to  his  religious  and  exemplary  walks.  He 
was  beloved  by  everybody  who  formed  his  acquaintance.  He 
was  a  kind,  loving  husband,  and  a  dear  father.  His  last  dying 
words  were,  that  he  felt  happy  in  the  Lord,  and  that  his 
reward  was  on  high.  He  said  that  he  was  going  to  die  like  old 
Simeon,  with  Christ  in  his  arms.    Before  the  breath  left  his  body 


*In  1820  the  Annual  Conference  of  the  Baltimore  District  was  held  in 
his  residence. 


Some  of  the  Founders. 


93 


he  told  them  to  raise  him  up;  he  then  sent  for  all  the  members 
of  his  family,  and  admonished  them  to  meet  him  in  heaven. 
He  raised  the  hymn : 

The  Lord  into  his  garden,  etc. 

and  while  singing  it  he  breathed  his  last,  in  the  44th  year  of  his 
age. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE  FIELD  OF  AFRICAN  METHODISM  IN  1832-1835. 

Baltimore  Conference— Philadelphia  Conference— The  General  Confer- 
ence—The Black  Code— The  Book  Committee  of  1832— New  York 
Conference — A  Missionary  to  Canada — Baltimore  Annual  Conference, 
1833— Delaware  Laws— Book  Steward's  Report— Rev.  William  P.  Qninn 
Admitted — Ohio  Conference  Record  of  1833— Action  in  Favor  of  Com- 
mon and  Sunday-Schools — Baltimore  Conference  Held  in  Washington, 
D.  C,  1834. 

FOR  several  years  it  is  to  be  noted  that  little  business  of  im- 
portance was  transacted  in  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference, 
so  that  its  history  has  been  summed  up  in  a  few  words.  It  seems 
as  if  a  change  had  passed  over  the  entire  character  of  this  once 
active  and  leading  Conference.  Either  the  master-spirits  had 
departed  or  they  had  backslidden,  and  the  energy  and  enterprise 
which  formerly  had  distinguished  it  was  transferred  to  the  Phil- 
adelphia District.  It  opened  its  deliberations  on  Saturday  morn- 
ing, April  21st,  1832,  and  the  first  thing  after  services  it  granted  a 
seat  to  Jeffrey  Goulden,  without  the  privilege  of  participating  in 
its  affairs.  We  find  here  again  Rev.  Edward  Waters  acting  as 
assistant  to  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  while  Rev.  Levin  Lee  was  sec- 
retary. As  Abner  Coker  desired  to  be  exonerated  from  the  duty 
of  being  a  delegate  to  the  General  Conference,  having  been  elected 
the  year  previous,  Charles  Dunn  was  appointed  in  his  stead,  and 
so  the  record  of  any  interest  ends. 

On  May  8th  we  find  the  Philadelphia  Conference  in  session, 
Bishop  Brown  presiding,  with  the  same  assistant  as  at  the  Balti- 
more Conference.  It  continued  in  session  two  days,  when  it  ad- 
journed to  hold  the  Fourth  General  Conference  (which  it  seems 
was  opened  on  the  tenth  and  ended  on  the  twenty-first) ;  it  then 
resumed  its  deliberations  upon  the  last  named  date. 

Rev.  Walter  Proctor  was  elected  a  delegate  to  the  approaching 
General  Conference.  A  case  of  breach  of  discipline  before  this 
session  leads  to  the  reference,  "according  to  page  200"  of  the 
Discipline  then  in  use,  from  which  we  draw  the  inference  that 
the  original  Discipline,  which  had  but  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
(94) 


The  Field  of  African  Methodism  in  1832-1835. 


95 


two  pages,  including  table  of  contents,  must  have  been  revised  in 
the  General  Conference  of  1824  or  1828. 

The  state  of  affairs  at  this  date  (1832)  was  such  that  our 
churches  in  certain  quarters  were  quite  seriously  threatened, 
which  led  to  the  attendance  at  this  Conference  of  a  delegation  of 
three  members  of  the  society  at  Elkton  for  the  purpose  of  request- 
ing that  something  might  be  done  in  behalf  of  the  churches  in 
Maryland  belonging  to  Smyrna  Circuit,  as  the  Black  ('ode  of 
that  state  forbade  any  colored  minister,  as  well  as  other  colored 
people  belonging  to  another  state,  from  entrance  there,  unless 
they  went  in  the  capacity  of  slaves,  or  servants  of  some  white  per- 
son. They  also  prayed  the  Conferenee  to  ordain  Brother  Aaron 
Wilson,  a  local  preacher,  and  ordain  him  to  take  the  oversight  of 
the  churches  alluded  to,  he  being  a  resident  of  the  state  of  Mary- 
land ;  the  said  brother,  however,  was  to  remain  pastor  only  until 
some  change  might  take  place  in  the  laws  or  the  feelings  of  the 
community  so  as  to  tolerate  the  presence  of  a  minister  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  whom  He  had  been  pleased  to  make  a  man  of  color! 
In  view  of  their  peculiar  circumstances  the  prayers  of  these 
churches  were  granted,  and  Brother  Wilson  was  ordained  a  deacon 
at  the  same  time  with  that  eminent  man,  Joseph  M.  Corr. 

Samuel  Ente,  wrho  had  located  at  the  last  Annual  Conference, 
was  readmitted  into  the  itineracy  in  this.  Clayton  Durham, 
Walter  Proctor  and  Charles  Bohannon  were  elected  to  serve  as 
"Book  Committee;"  and  we  find  that  noble  band  of  women,  the 
"  Daughters  of  Conference,"  presenting  the  sum  of  $57.99  to  the 
Conference. 

The  New  York  Annual  Conference  met  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn 
this  year,  June  9th.  Benjamin  Croger  and  George  Hogarth  were 
its  secretaries,  and  for  its  good  government,  rules  were  adopted 
which  subjected  the  members  to  fines  varying  from  twelve  and  a 
half  to  fifty  cents,  if  violated.  These  related  to  absence  and 
tardiness,  to  refusal  to  "come  to  order,"  and  neglect  to  vote  upon 
important  measures. 

Bishop  Morris  Brown  presided  this  time,  with  Rev.  John  Cor- 
nish as  his  assistant  for  the  session.  CufFee  Spence  and  Eli  N. 
Hall  were  admitted  on  probation ;  Jeremiah  Miller  was  sent  as  a 
missionary  to  Canada,  and  Samuel  George  was  recorded  among 
the  dead,  which  items  were  alone  of  any  note,  and  there  are  but 
three  things  worthy  of  historical  record  in  the  affairs  of  the 
Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  the  following  year,  1833 ; 


96 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


At  the  opening  of  it.s  session  a  committee  of  three  was  ap- 
pointed to  inquire  of  the  judge  of  the  city  court  whether  the 
Conference  could  be  allowed  the  privilege  of  stationing  a  preacher 
over  the  church  in  Baltimore,  who  was  a  resident  of  another 
state.  Hagerstown,  Fredericktown,  and  the  Cattaxon  Mountain 
were  attached  under  the  pastorate  of  the  Baltimore  Church,  and 
Brother  William  Moore  was  admitted  on  trial  to  the  itineracy. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  of  1833  opened  the  18th  of  May, 
and  it  saw  Rev.  William  Paul  Quinn  petitioning  to  rejoin  the 
Connection.  He  had  made  application  to  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence, or  rather  to  the  minwteriwm  of  the  mother  church  in  Phila- 
delphia, to  reunite  with  the  Connection  on  June  18th,  1828,  at 
which  meeting  the  following  action  was  had: 

Resolved,  On  motion,  that  before  we  proceed  any  further  in  Brother  Wil- 
liam Quinn's  case,  that  he  return  to  New  York  and  consult  his  people 
whom  he  now  serves,  and  amongst  whom  he  now  belongs,  and  hear  what 
they  say  on  the  subject,  and  get  their  consent  for  him  or  them  to  join  the 
Connection,  one  way  or  the  other." 

The  present  petition  was  referred  to  the  New  York  Conference. 

Inasmuch  as  the  laws  of  Delaware  did  not  allow  the  ambassa- 
dors of  the  Cross,  who  were  colored  men,  to  itinerate  in  that 
state,  the  churches  on  Lewiston  Circuit  petitioned  Conference  to 
ordain  Moses  Robinson  and  Peter  Lewis,  a  local  elder,  to  min- 
ister for  them  in  holy  things,  and  their  petition  was  granted. 

The  Salem  Circuit,  in  New  Jersey,  was  divided  at  this  date. 
The  upper  part  was  made  to  extend  "from  Woodbury  upwards," 
and  was  called  Burlington  Circuit;  the  lower  part  to  extend 
"from  Dutchtown  downwards,"  and  to  retain  the  name  of  Salem 
Circuit.  The  former  embraced  Woodbury,  Pendleton,  Snowhill, 
Mount  Holly  and  Burlington,  containing  two  hundred  and  fif- 
teen members ;  the  latter  embraced  Salem,  Dutchtown,  Bushtown, 
Greenwich  and  Fairfield,  containing  two  hundred  and  seventy- 
nine  members. 

Perry  Gibson  was  received  on  trial,  and  two  preachers  were 
numbered  among  the  dead,  Charles  Pierce  and  William  Johnson, 
the  latter  a  deacon,  and  an  old  veteran  of  the  Cross. 

At  this  meeting  the  book  steward  reported  one  thousand  copies 
of  the  Discipline  printed  at  a  cost  of  $70,  and  five  hundred  bound 
at  a  cost  of  $40.  The  amount  of  books  sold  was  S20,  and  with 
the  statement  of  cash  remaining  from  last  year  of  $28,  there 
was  also  the  recorded  fact  of  a  loan  of  862  to  carry  on  the  con- 


The  Field  of  African  Methodism  in  1882-1836. 


97 


cern.  It  is  evident  thai  the  book  concern  was  not  doing  a  greal 
amount  of  business,  bul  for  the  times  and  under  the  circum- 
stances, perhaps,  it  may  be  looked  upon  as  flourishing  creditably. 

The  New  York  Conference  began  to  transact  its  business 
upon  the  8th  of  June,  in  1833,  and  opened  with  added  rules  for 
preservation  of  order  and  decorum.  It  evidently  had  faith  in 
the  influence  of  fines  to  bring  this  about,  for  this  penalty 
was  the  one  attached  to  some  of  these  rules.  The  Conference, 
too,  had  reached  the  stage  of  appreciation  of  its  own  dignity 
and  importance  as  a  body  to  require  a  post-office  messenger,  and 
London  Turpin  was  given  that  duty  to  perform — to  bring  to 
Conference  each  day  the  letters  directed  to  that  body. 

Francis  Graham  was  received  into  Conference  and  afterwards 
placed  on  trial  as  an  itinerant  preacher,  while  Rev.  William 
Paul  Quinn  was  "admitted  a  member."  He  had  petitioned  this 
body,  as  he  had  been  referred  to  it  by  the  Philadelphia  Confer- 
ence of  this  year,  and  at  last,  after  the  action  of  that  body  and 
of  the  Mother  Church,  covering  a  period  of  five  years,  he  re- 
gained his  position  in  the  Connection.  Immediately  after  his 
reception  he  was  transferred  to  the  Western  field  of  labor — to 
the  Ohio  Conference,  which  had  been  organized  in  1830. 

One  laborer  had  fallen — Enos  Adams — who,  after  laboring 
extensively  through  his  charge,  died  of  the  small-pox,  terminat- 
ing a  useful  life. 

The  Ohio  or  Western  Conference  was  organized  by  Rt.  Rev. 
Bishop  Morris  Brown,  in  1830,  as  has  been  said ;  but  the  first 
record  of  its  proceedings  which  are  available  for  information  is 
that  found  in  the  printed  minutes  of  1833.*  In  this  year  it 
opened  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh,  and  continued  in  session  for 
nine  days.  Bishop  Morris  Brown  presided,  and  Rev.  Lewis 
Woodson  was  its  secretary.  Fifteen  members  were  present, 
seven  being  itinerants — Revs.  John  Boggs,  Wiley  Reynolds, 
Austin  Jones,  Jeremiah  Thomas,  W.  P.  Quinn,  Thomas  Law- 
rence, James  Bird — and  the  remainder  local — Revs.  Lewis  Wood- 
son, Samuel  Johnson,  Abram  D.  Lewis,  Samuel  Collins,  Samuel 
Enty,  Pleasant  Underwood,  George  Coleman  and  Samuel  Cling- 
man. 

*The  journal  containing  the  minutes  of  its  organization,  together  with 
the  journal  of  the  General  Conference  for  several  successive  years,  has 
been  lost. 
7 


98  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  Bishop  delivered  an  appropriate  and  impressive  address 
to  the  Conference  on  the  "importance  of  promoting  harmony 
and  good  feeling  among  themselves  and  all  Christian  people, 
and  that  they  should  study  to  show  themselves  in  all  their  pur- 
suits approved  unto  God." 

Twenty-four  points  were  reported  for  the  five  circuits,  while 
several  were  not  given.  Pittsburgh  Circuit  had  three:  Pittsburgh, 
Washington  and  Uniontown,  with  an  aggregate  of  306  mem- 
bers; Zanesville  Circuit  had  Zanesville,  Captain,  Mount  Pleas- 
ant, Smithfield,  Steuben ville  and  Wheeling,  with  205  members; 
Columbus  Circuit  had  Columbus,  Arbana,  New  Lancaster,  Cir- 
cleville  and  Springfield,  with  166  members;  Chillicothe  Circuit 
had  Chillicothe,  Big  Bottom,  Jackson  and  Gallipolis,  with  193 
members;  while  Hillsborough  Circuit  embraced  Hillsborough, 
Wilmington,  Zand,  Dayton,  Harden's  Creek  and  White  Oak, 
with  126  members. 

The  total  returned  for  the  Ohio  District  was  1,194.  William 
Paul  Quinn  was  stationed  over  the  Pittsburgh  Circuit,  and 
Austin  Jones  over  Zanesville. 

The  secretary  says  that  "the  following  important  resolutions 
were  passed : " 

Resolved,  As  the  sense  of  this  Conference,  that  common  schools,  Sunday- 
schools,  and  temperance  societies  are  of  the  highest  importance  to  all 
people  ;  but  more  especially  to  us  as  a  people. 

Resolved,  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  every  member  of  this  Conference 
to  do  all  in  his  power  to  promote  and  establish  these  useful  institutions 
among  our  people. 

He  might  well  call  them  important.  They  constitute  a  new 
era  in  the  history  of  our  Church,  because  they  are  the  first  of 
the  kind  on  record.  Seventeen  years  had  passed  away  from  the 
founding  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  before  a 
word  was  said  in  its  Conferences  on  the  important  subject  of 
education;  and  it  remained  for  this,  the  youngest  and  least  of 
the  four  Conferences,  to  give  the  first  utterance  on  a  subject  so 
vital  to  the  interests  of  the  colored  race  in  these  United  States, 
considered  so  in  an  ecclesiastical,  social,  moral,  or  political  point 
of  view.  In  this  case  the  order  of  light  seems  to  have  been 
reversed.  We  always  look  for  its  rising  in  the  east,  but  in  this 
instance  its  dawning  was  in  the  west! 

The  secretary  tells  us  also  that  "At  the  close  of  this  Confer- 
ence God  was  pleased,  in  a  most  miraculous  manner,  to  display 


The  FieM  of  African  Methodism  in  1832-1835.  90 


bis  power  at  the  love  feasl  "so  thai  many  souls  were  added  to 
the  Lord;'  thus  giving  a  fiat  and  eternal  refutation  to  the  oft- 
repeated  falsehood,  that  'education  destroys  religion.'" 

Jeremiah  Thomas  and  Pleasant  Underwood  were  ordained 
deacons;  and  one  of  the  traveling  preachers  had  Laid  down  the 
cross  for  the  crown.  This  one  was  Samuel  Madison,  a  licentiate, 
who  was  appointed  at  the  last  Conference  to  Hillsborough  Cir- 
cuit, and  "finished  his  course;  and  his  life  together,  dying  in  the 
triumphs  of  faith."  In  this  connection  we  learn,  too,  that 
.lames  Byrd  had  charge  of  that  circuit  at  that  time. 

At  the  last  Annual  Conference  for  the  Baltimore  District  it 
was  voted  to  hold  the  Annual  Conference  for  this  year  in  the 
city  of  Washington;  accordingly,  we  find  the  members  of  the 
same  assembling  themselves  at  Israel  Church,  about  9  o'clock, 
on  Saturday  morning,  April  19,  1834;  and  sat  by  adjournments 
until  Monday,  the  28th,  inclusive.  Bishop  Morris  Brown  pre- 
sided, with  Rev.  Levin  Lee  as  secretary. 

At  the  end  of  the  printed  minutes  we  find  the  following  remarks : 

The  sitting  of  this  Conference  was  attended  with  unusual  success;  it 
being  the  first  colored  body  that  lias  ever  convened  in  the  Capital  of  the 
United  States,  caused  great  excitement.  Many  hundreds,  both  of  white 
and  colored,  assembled  at  the  preaching-house,  especially  on  the  Lord's 
Day,  and  listened  with  delight  to  the  embassadors  of  the  cross." 

We  also  learn  that  the  authorities  of  the  city  expressed  their 
good  feelings  toward  the  Conference,  and  offered  their  protection 
in  case  any  occurrences  should  require  such  action.  President 
Jackson  was  waited  upon  by  the  Conference  in  a  body,  and  His 
Excellency  expressed  his  warmest  approbation  of  the  work,  and 
wished  hearty  success  to  the  cause.  It  is  also  recorded  that  the 
ministrations  of  the  ministers  were  very  successful,  fourteen 
coming  forward  professing  their  faith  in  Christ  and  joining  the 
Society. 

The  Society  this  year  was  called  upon  to  suffer  the  loss  of  the 
Rev.  Abner  Coker.  Mr.  Coker,  who  had  been  one  of  the  found- 
ers of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  was  a  useful  and  zealous  local  deacon. 
He  died  in  the  fall  of  1833. 

The  Society  appears  at  this  time  to  have  been  in  great  need  of 
traveling  preachers,  as  we  find  it  recorded  that  Frederick  City 
and  Hagerstown  were  to  be  served  only  once  in  three  months  by 
Rev.  L.  Lee,  and  William  A.  Nichols  was  apportioned  to  perform 
the  same  service  to  Easton,  Maryland. 


100 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


William  A.  Nichols  had  only  been  admitted  into  full  connec- 
tion at  this  Conference,  and  Jeffrey  Goulden  on  trial.  Preachers 
were  stationed  in  Baltimore,  and  on  Chambersburg,  Columbia 
and  Lewistown  Circuits.  « 

The  minutes  state  that  the  members  in  Society  were  reported, 
but  how  many,  or  in  what  districts  they  were,  is  not  stated;  nor 
do  we  find  anything  relating  to  the  financial  condition  of  this 
Conference. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  of  this  year  was  opened  in  the 
usual  manner  on  Saturday  morning,  May  24th.  At  this  time 
the  Smyrna  Circuit,  in  Delaware,  was  detached  from  the  Phila- 
delphia Conference  and  attached  to  the  Baltimore  District.  Rev. 
Richard  Robertson  was  received  into  the  itineracy.  He  had  been 
ordained  a  deacon  and  an  elder  by  this  Conference  in  its  session 
of  1830,  and  that  same  year  he  returned  to  his  field  of  labor  in 
Hayti.  We  find  him  at  this  date  representing  Trenton  Circuit, 
which  he  had  been  serving  the  three  months  prior  to  the  opening 
of  the  Philadelphia  Conference.  No  report  is  to  be  found  of  his 
work  in  Hayti,  at  least  not  to  the  Annual  Conferences,  though 
such  report  may  have  been  given  to  Bishop  Brown. 

This  Conference  was  more  fruitful  in  business  and  regulations 
r< 'garding  the  welfare  of  the  Church  than  had  been  the  Confer- 
ence at  .Washington.  Although  not  the  first  item  of  business 
transacted,  the  subject  of  education  was  the  most  important,  and 
a  resolution  was  passed  "  that  as  the  subject  of  education  is  one  of 
high  importance  to  the  colored  population  of  the  country,  it  shall 
be  the  duty  of  every  minister  who  has  the  charge  of  circuits  or 
stations  to  make  use  of  every  effort  to  establish  schools  wherever 
convenient,  and  to  insist  upon  the  parents  of  children  that  they 
send  them  to  school ;  and  that  a  sermon  should  occasionally  be 
preached  expressly  upon  that  subject;  and  that  it  should  be  the 
duty  of  every  minister  to  make  yearly  returns  of  the  number  of 
schools,  the  number  of  scholars  in  each,  the  places  where  they 
are  located,  and  the  branches  taught  on  their  circuits  and  stations, 
and  that  every  preacher  who  neglects  to  do  so  to  be  subject  to 
the  censure  of  the  Conference." 

This  stringent  resolution  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  originated 
within  the  Philadelphia  Conference.  At  the  Ohio  Conference 
for  1833,  a  somewhat  similar  resolution  was  passed,  and  we  may 
conclude  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  who 
was  presiding,  had  also  presided  over  the  Ohio  Conference  when 


The  Field  of  African  Methodism  in  1832-1835.  101 


the  resolution  was  passed,  and  that  the  Philadelphia  Conference 
of  this  year  was  to  some  degree  influenced  by  the  action  of  Ohio. 
Bishop  Brown  was  a  man  who  was  always  ready  to  sustain  any 
action  looking  forward  to  the  upward  progress  of  the  colored 
race,  and  probably  the  passage  of  this  resolution  was  greatly  facil- 
itated by  his  actions.  We  have  seen  that  no  action  was  taken  in 
the  matter  by  the  Baltimore  Conference  just  closed,  but  the 
reasons  for  the  silence  of  that  Conference  upon  such  an  important 
work  we  are  at  a  loss  to  determine,  unless  it  be  on  account  of  the 
Maryland  laws  being  similar  to  those  of  various  other  states  in 
regard  to  the  education  of  colored  peorfle. 

The  most  important  resolution  tending  to  the  uplifting  and 
benefiting  of  the  members  of  the  Church  was  passed  in  the  in- 
terests of  temperance.  It  reads,  "that  the  subject  of  temperance 
be  strongly  recommended  to  all  our  members,  and  that  every 
preacher  in  this  Conference  come  under  the  obligation  to  abstain 
from  ardent  spirits,  and  to  cry  against  it  wherever  they  go." 

Efforts  were  made  at  this  Conference  to  aid  the  Preachers'  Aid 
Fund,  although  in  a  somewhat  indirect  way,  by  a  resolution 
exhorting  the  preachers  in  charge  to  advise  their  members  to 
raise  twelve  and  a  half  cents  each  a  year  to  aid  the  publishing 
fund,  the  profits  of  which  are  to  be  applied  to  the  benefit  of  the 
worn-out  and  sick  traveling  preachers.  It  was  also  made  imper- 
ative for  every  preacher  in  charge  to  take  up  a  collection  in  every 
principal  appointment  on  his  circuit,  but  for  what  purpose  this 
collection  was  to  be  applied  is  not  stated.  The  Daughters  of 
Conference  this  year  donated  fifty  dollars. 

A  resolution  was  also  passed  by  which  exhorters  were  deprived 
of  a  seat  in  the  Conference.  Previousry  they  had  a  seat,  but  no 
voice  in  the  proceedings.  We  have  only  one  name,  Charles  A. 
Spicer,  added  to  the  Connection  in  1834,  at  this  Conference,  as  a 
local  preacher.  Two  deaths  are,  however,  recorded — Rev.  Joseph 
Harper,  who  had  been  admitted  in  the  New  York  Conference  of 
1823  as  an  itinerant,  and  ordained  in  1824,  and  Rev.  Joseph  Chain, 
the  latter  a  local  deacon,  who  formerly  lived  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  Maryland,  and  who  was  admitted  on  trial  into  the  Baltimore 
Annual  Conference  as  early  as  1820.  The  former  was  first  ap- 
pointed to  the  Bucks  County  Circuit,  Pa.,  under  charge  of  Rev. 
W.  P.  Quinn.  He  was  ordained  deacon  at  the  Philadelphia  Con- 
ference in  1824,  and  elder  at  the  next  Conference.  He  traveled 
regularly  until  his  death,  and  was  laboring  on  the  Trenton  Cir- 


102 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


cuit  when  he  died.  February  1,  1884.  His  place  was  filled  in  that 
work  by  Brother  Robinson. 

This  year  witnessed  the  session  of  the  New  York  Annual  Con- 
ference in  Brooklyn,  where  it  was  opened  under  the  presidency 
of  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  assisted  by  Rev.  Edward  Waters,  and 
having  Rev.  George  Hogarth  as  secretary.  Its  session  lasted  only 
nine  days,  opening  on  the  14th  and  closing  on  the  23d  of  June. 

By  a  special  resolution  Willis  Jones.  Joshua  .Jenkins  and  Caesar 
Springfield,  licentiates  of  New  York,  and  Daniel  Peterson,  of 
Philadelphia,  obtained  seats  in  the  Conference,  but  no  voice  in 
its  deliberations.  Francis  P.  Graham  was  ordained  an  elder. 
Following  in  the  wake  of  Ohio  and  Philadelphia,  the  New  York 
Conference  took  up  the  question  of  education,  and,  after  discus- 
sion, unanimously  passed  a  resolution  "that  we  will  use  every 
exertion  in  our  power  to  advise  and  encourage  our  people  to  send 
their  children  to  Sabbath  and  other  schools."  While  this  resolu- 
tion was  not  as  stringent  in  character  as  the  one  passed  by  the 
Philadelphia  Conference,  it  showed  that  the  spirit  was  spreading. 

The  cause  of  temperance  was  introduced  by  the  Bishop.  He 
called  the  attention  of  the  brethren  to  Chapter  II.,  Section  1, 
Clause  II.  of  the  Discipline,  which  says :  "  Avoid  all  drunkenness 
or  drinking  spirituous  liquors,  unless  in  case  of  necessity.'*  The 
members  hound  themselves  to  endeavor  by  example  and  influ- 
ence to  enforce  this  rule  in  the  aid  of  temperance.  The  curse  of 
gambling,  then  as  now,  seems  to  have  obtained  a  considerable 
hold  upon  the  people,  for  we  find  this  Conference  dealing  with 
the  subject  by  a  resolution  to  discourage  the  purchase  and  sale  of 
lottery  tickets  so  far  as  they  could  by  example  and  influence.  It 
is  to  he  regretted  that  this  question  of  gambling  in  any  form,  as 
well  as  the  purchase  and  sale  of  lottery  tickets,  was  not  dealt 
with  in  a  much  more  stringent  manner. 

The  affairs  of  the  Book  Concern  were  examined,  and  Abram 
Marks  elected  district  book  steward  for  1835.  It  was  also  resolved 
that  the  minutes  of  the  three  Conferences — Baltimore,  Philadel- 
phia and  New  York — for  1884  should  be  published  together. 

About  this  time,  Rev.  N.  C.  AY.  Cannon,  a  man  of  very  eccen- 
tric habits  and  irregular  mode  of  thinking,  but  as  active  and 
laborious  as  he  was  eccentric,  wrote  and  published  a  book,  to 
which  he  gave  the  dignified  title  of  "Rock  of  Wisdom."  This 
book  was  taken  up  by  this  Conference  and  examined.  It  re- 
sulted in  the  adoption  of  the  resolution  that  "the  book  con- 


The  Field  of  African  Methodism  in  18&2-1835. 


tains  many  errors,"  and,  we  arc  told,  "upon  which  Brother  Can- 
non came  forward  and  acknowledged  that  the  book  is  full  of 
errors  on  almost  every  page."  The  secretary  further  says  of  it: 
11  It  was  found  to  contain  many  erroneous  principles  repugnant 
to  the  Articles  of  Faith  believed  and  taught  by  the  Methodist 
Church,  Hrothei-  Cannon  acknowledged  this:  his  acknowledg- 
ment was  received,  and  the  book  condemned  by  the  Conference." 
We  also  find  Brother  Cannon  located  the  next  day  by  his  own 
request. 

From  this  Conference  Bishop  Brown  went  to  take  the  pastoral 
charge  of  the  mother  church  in  Philadelphia,  taking  with  him 
the  Rev.  John  Cornish  as  his  assistant,  while  Francis  P.  Graham 
was  sent  to  take  charge  of  the  Harrisburg  Circuit  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. 

Here  again,  at  this  point,  we  meet  with  a  chasm  in  the  history 
of  the  Ohio  Conference  District,  as  the  journal  of  1834  is  lost. 
This  leads  us  to  turn  again  to  the  Baltimore  Conference  to  see 
what  it  was  doing  for  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  in  1835. 

For  the  second  time  we  see  Rev.  Stephen  Smith  present 
in  the  Baltimore  Conference,  and  for  the  first  time  John  Jordan 
and  Joshua  Gilbert.  Whether  the  first  mentioned  alone,  or  the 
two  latter  with  him,  aided  in  diffusing  a  new  spirit  into  this  Con- 
ference, which  for  several  years  past  had  exhibited  very  little  vital- 
ity, we  have  no  means  of  deciding.  One  thing,  however,  is  evident, 
and  that  is,  it  began  to  act  on  all  points  vital  to  the  improvement 
of  the  churches  with  its  ancient  vigor  and  wisdom.  The  well 
knowrn  zeal  of  Brother  Smith  for  all  the  various  forms  of  moral 
improvement,  leads  us  to  believe  that  he  was  the  man  in  the 
new  measures  introduced,  although  there  is  no  record  to  that 
effect  other  than  results. 

Brother  Smith  was  admitted  by  vote  into  the  Annual  Confer- 
ence as  a  local  preacher  through  recommendation  from  the  Har- 
risburg Circuit,  and  ordained  at  their  request  in  the  year  1831, 
but  with  the  exception  of  one  day  he  does  not  appear  present 
until  1835. 

At  this  Conference  a  motion  was  introduced  to  inquire  into 
the  sinfulness  of  the  u  e  of  ardent  spirits,  and  another  to  organ- 
ize a  temperance  society.  The  former  was  sustained,  but  the 
latter  lost.  In  spite  of  this  the  Conference  declared  itself  in 
favor  of  "strictly  and  perseveringly  recommending  the  temper- 
ance cause  on  the  respective  circuits  and  in  their  stations,  both 


104 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


by  example  and  precepts."  It  also  provided  that  in  case  of  de- 
fault the  preacher  offending  should  be  dealt  with  as  in  all  cases 
of  imprudence  and  neglect  of  duty  laid  down  in  the  Discipline. 

It  was  made  the  duty  of  itinerants  to  impress  on  the  parents  • 
the  duty  of  sending  their  children  to  school.    But,  following  in 
the  wake  of  the  active  measures  taken  by  the  other  Conferences 
to  promote  education,  this  body  did  not  exhibit  much  vigor  in  its 
educational  policy. 

Four  delegates  were  elected  to  the  General  Conference  of  1836, 
Nathaniel  Peck,  Levin  Lee,  Basil  Simms  and  Stephen  Smith. 
These  were  local  preachers,  and  the  reason  for  their  election  as 
delegates  to  the  General  Conference  is  found  in  the  fact  that  all 
traveling  preachers  who  had  been  in  actual  service  for  several 
years  were  ex  officio  members  of  the  General  Conference;  local 
preachers  were  not,  and,  therefore,  to  have  a  seat  and  a  voice  in 
the  General  Conference,  it  was  necessary  to  elect  them. 

The  church  at  Easton,  on  the  eastern  shore  of  Maryland,  was 
placed  under  the  pastorate  of  Baltimore  City,  and  the  church  at 
Port-au-Prince  was  asked  to  nominate  a  man  from  among  its 
members  competent  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  elder,  who  might  then 
take  charge  of  it. 

Of  the  ministry  none  had  fallen  by  the  hand  of  death  this 
year  past  but  Rev.  Seipio  Beanes,  who  at  the  time  was  in  Port- 
au-Prince.  As  he  was  the  first  missionary  selected  and  ordained 
especially  to  preach  the  Gospel  on  the  island  of  Hayti,  a  short 
sketch  of  his  life  is  pertinent  in  our  history. 

Scipio  Beanes  was  born  in  Prince  George's  County,  Maryland, 
sometime  in  the  year  1793.  He  was  just  about  twenty  years  of 
age  when  he  moved  to  the  city  of  Washington.  He  was  born  a 
slave,  and  had  obtained  permission  from  his  master  to  attend  the 
school  which  was  then  held  in  Prince  George's  County,  in  which 
he  obtained  the  elementary  principles  of  an  English  education. 
In  1818  Dr.  Beanes,  his  master,  made  him  a  present  of  his  free- 
dom. The  next  year  he  married  Miss  Harriet  Bell,  of  Washing- 
ton City,  daughter  of  one  of  the  most  influential  members  of 
our  church  in  that  city  for  many  years,  being  trustee  and  leader 
at  the  time  of  his  death,  in  1845. 

On*  the  19th  of  October,  1824,  Scipio  Beanes  was  struck  with 
conviction  on  account  of  his  sins,  and  in  a  few  months  after  he 
experienced  a  change  of  heart  in  the  first  Little  Bethel  at  Wash- 
ington, under  the  preaching  of  Rev.  Jacob  Matthews.    After  his 


The  Field  of  A/rim,,  Methodism  k  L832-1886. 


106 


conversion,  he  daily  grew  in  grace,  and  in  the  knowledge  of 
divine  things.  The  first  office  that  he  filled  in  the  church  was 
that  of  assistant  elass-leader  to  Rev.  George  Hicks.  Sometime 
after  this  lie  felt  deeply  impressed  to  call  sinners  to  repentance, 
and  he  immediately  obeyed  the  divine  call.  Having  been  duly 
authorized  in  1825  or  1826  to  exercise  his  ministerial  gifts  by  the 
church  at  Washington,  he  was  commissioned  by  lit.  Rev.  Rich- 
ard Allen  to  visit  the  churches  on  the  eastern  shore  of  Maryland. 
His  Labors  among  these  societies  were  owned  and  blessed  by  tin; 
Lord.  He  remained  laboring  in  the  (Jospel  among  them  as  long 
as  his  health  permitted  such  service,  but  his  dedicate  constitu- 
tion, the  severity  of  the  winter,  and  the  bad  accommodations 
which  were  afforded  him,  compelled  him  to  abandon  tin;  field 
and  return  home.  In  this  homeward  journey  the  snow  was  so 
deep  that  he  was  compelled  to  quit  the  saddle;,  and  on  foot  pur- 
sue his  journey,  leading  his  horse  nearly  the  whole  distance  from 
Annapolis  to  Washington.  The  consequence  was  that  he  was 
seized  with  a  severe  pulmonary  affection,  which  induced  his  phy- 
sician to  declare  him  in  deep  consumption,  and  to  advise  him  to 
go  to  some  warm  climate;  so  in  1826  he  left  home  for  Port-au- 
Prince  to  improve  his  health.  There  he  remained  one  year, 
doing  all  he  could  by  precept  and  example  to  lead  the  American  • 
colonists,  as  well  as  the  native  Haytians,  to  a  knowledge  of 
Christ,  who  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world.  In  the  spring 
of  1827  he  returned  home.  The  people  had  been  benefited 
through  his  ministrations,  and  his  health  was  improved.  The 
result  of  his  labors,  as  reported  to  Bishop  Richard  Allen,  led  the 
latter  to  bring  him  before  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  that  year, 
and  the  result  of  this  introduction  has  been  seen  in  the  inquiry 
and  resolutions  which  led  that  body  to  ordain  him  doubly  for 
the  mission  in  Hayti,  and  commission  him  to  this  point  as  one 
among  the  six  appointments  read  at  that  session — an  instance 
worthy  of  notice  as  being  the  only  instance  in  the  history  of 
our  Church  where  the  appointment  to  a  foreign  mission  is  re- 
corded as  one  and  among  the  regular  spots  of  labor  in  the  regular 
work  of  our  ministry. 

In  little  less  than  one  year  from  the  date  of  Brother  Beanes' 
appointment,  he  returned  and  reported  (in  1828)  that  the  num- 
ber in  Society  at  Port-au-Prince  was  seventy-two,  and  that 
place  appears  again  in  the  regular  work.  One  year  from  this 
time  he  was  admitted  into  full  connection,  and  reported  the 


100 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


number  of  182  members  in  the  Society  at  Port-au-Prinee,  and 
it  seems  that  between  the  time  of  his  arrival  from  Hayti  and  the 
opening  of  the  Conference,  he  labored  on  the  Easton  Circuit  in 
the  Baltimore  District. 

In  consequence  of  his  infirmities  he  located  in  1829,  and  re- 
mained in  this  relation  until  the  year  1831,  when  he  was  elected 
to  represent  the  church  in  Washington  at  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  1832,  but  it  is  not  known  whether  he  filled  the  office  of 
delegate  or  not.  It  is  certain,  however,  that  he  was  present  at 
the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  that  year  until  its  close. 

From  this  date  we  see  and  hear  no  more  of  him  in  the  United 
States  until  the  record  is  made  of  his  death  at  the  Baltimore 
Conference  in  1835;  but  his  wife  tells  of  their  return  to  Hayti 
and  Port-au-Prince  in  1832,  where  he  again  took  charge,  the  Lord 
blessing  his  labors  in  the  souls  added  to  the  Church.  His  health 
improved  at  first,  then  began  to  fail.  He  was  a  great  sufferer,  but 
a  patient,  uncomplaining  one,  and  without  flinching  he  continued 
to  labor.  It  was  his  wife's  desire  to  return  home,  but  the  rapid 
encroachments  of  the  disorder  prevented  this,  and  he  was  con- 
tent to  remain  and  die  in  Hayti,  saying,  "Heaven  is  as  near  to 
Port-au-Prince  as  to  Washington."  He  literally  finished  his  life 
and  his  labors  together,  for  we  are  told  that  he  baptized  and  ad- 
ministered the  Lord's  Supper  on  a  Sabbath  (January  12,  1835), 
and  went  home  to  heaven  the  next  morning  at  dawn,  in  the 
forty-second  year  of  his  age.  He  was  generally  beloved  by  the 
people,  it  seems,  and  esteemed  as  well.  We  are  told  that  he 
performed  the  marriage  of  the  French  ambassador,  Mr.  Dennev, 
himself  a  Methodist.  His  labors  were  confined,  so  said  his  wife, 
entirely  to  the  city  of  Port-au-Prince,  because  his  health  did  not 
permit  him  to  travel  over  the  island.  So  much  we  know  of  the 
life  and  death  of  our  first  worker  in  the  foreign  missionary  field 
of  the  West  Indies. 

The  ministers  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  met  in  annual 
assembly  in  1835.  but  nothing  of  importance  bearing  upon  the 
welfare  of  the  Church  was  done  at  this  Conference.  It  followed 
its  action  of  the  previous  year  by  resolutions  in  favor  of  tem- 
perance, and  by  calling  upon  all  the  preachers  to  uphold  it  by 
precept  and  advice.  * 

There  was  a  verbal  petition  by  a  delegate  from  the  church  at 
Reading,  Brother  George  Dillon,  praying  that  pastoral  labors  and 
the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  might  be  given  more  regularly  to 


The  Field  <>f  African  Methodism  vn  1832-1836.  107 


the  flock  of  Christ.  Delegates  were  elected  to  the  Genera]  Con- 
ference in  the  persona  of  Sampson  Peters,  .Joshua  P.  B.  Eddy, 
Jeremiah  Durham,  William  Henry,  Clayton  Durham  and  Walter 
Proctor,  representing  respectively  Trenton  Circuit,  Burlington 
Circuit,  Salem  Circuit,  Bucks  County  and  Chester,  while  the  last 
two  named  were  for  Philadelphia.  Elder  Cornish  was  trans- 
ferred to  Baltimore  Conference,  and  Elder  Scott  to  New  York, 
and  all  the  churches  in  Maryland  on  the  Lewistown  Circuit  were 
placed  under  the  charge  of  Rev.  Andrew  Massey. 

In  this  Conference  the  Rev.  Joseph  M.  Corr  made  a  report 
upon  the  state  of  the  hook  concern,  as  its  general  hook  steward. 
He  had  had  printed  one  thousand  copies  of  the  Discipline,  and 
five  hundred  of  these  hound.  One  thousand  hymn-hooks  had 
been  printed  and  hound;  also,  two  thousand  minutes  of  the  Con- 
ferences. The  whole  cost  was  reported  as  about  six  hundred  dol- 
lars, including  transportation  to  different  places,  commission, 
etc.  There  were  still  some  unbound  Disciplines  and  several 
hundred  copies  of  minutes  "unsold,  and  which  he  feared  would 
be  a  "  dead  loss."  He  had  sold  hymn-books  and  Disciplines  to 
the  amount  of  $300.  He  further  stated  that  when  he  commenced 
operations  there  were  but  $28.00  on  hand,  hut  he  had  "  succeeded 
in  getting  through  with  all  this  huge  debt,"  and  had  on  hand, 
clear  of  all  present  contingencies,  $60.00,  with  which  to  com- 
mence the  Publishing  Fund,  while  he  had  received  from  the 
circuit  for  the  same  object  $12.19. 

This  report,  which  he  hoped  to  have  health  and  strength  per- 
mitted him  to  render  more  correct  another  year,  was  his  last — 
the  end  of  his  labors  as  an  excellent  secretary  for  the  Philadel- 
phia Conference,  and  as  general  book  steward  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.    He  died  in  October  of  this  same  year. 

The  New  York  Conference  of  1835  met  in  Brooklyn  on  June  13th. 
With  the  exception  of  a  strong  resolution  making  it  the  duty  of 
every  traveling  minister  to  use  his  utmost  endeavors  to  promote 
education,  and  a  resolution  to  encourage  temperance — two  things 
which  had  gone  hand-in-hand  down  through  the  Conference — 
nothing  of  importance  seems  to  have  been  done.  Bishop  Brown 
•  presided,  and  during  this  visit,  assisted  by  Rev.  Edward  Waters 
and  Rev.  Samuel  Todd,  laid  the  corner  stone  of  the  church  on 
Second  street,  New  York. 

The  district  book  steward,  who  was  the  Rev.  George  Hogarth, 
reported  sales  in  the  district  for  the  year  as  amounting  to  $2G.87J. 


108  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


There  were  nine  hundred  and  forty-seven  persons  members  of 
the  New  York  churches,  but  only  twenty  had  been  induced  to 
purchase  the  minutes  of  the  Annual  Conference,  although  they 
were  but  twelve  and  a  half  cents  apiece.  But  it  is  evident  that 
the  appreciation  of  the  work  of  the  book»concern  was  growing  in 
spite  of  this,  or  there  was  good  financial  management,  as  in  the 
case  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference. 

Of  the  ministry  this  year  but  one  had  entered  the  spirit  world. 
That  one  was  Rev.  Fortune  Mathias,  who  had  died  in  tfie  city  of 
New  York,  aged  seventy-eight  years.  He  was  born  a  slave,  in  the 
state  of  Maryland,  and  among  the  first  pioneers  of  color  he  en- 
tered the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Norfolk  of  that  state. 
He  had  been  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel  for  about  forty-eight  years, 
and  labored  successfully,  and  with  the  high  appreciation  from 
all  classes  in  that  vicinity.  About  ten  years  previous  to  his 
death  he  got  permission  from  his  owner  to  move  into  New  York 
state,  and  there  immediately  joined  himself  to  the  itinerant  ser- 
vice of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Such  was  his 
ardent  desire  to  carry  the  Gospel  unto  the  poor  of  his  brethren 
in  distant  parte  of  the  country,  that  he  was  somewhat  grieved 
because  his  brethren,  at  the  sitting  of  the  last  Annual  Confer- 
ence, refused  him  that  privilege  in  consideration  of  his  extreme 
old  age  and  aggravated  state  of  bodily  infirmity.  He  lived  an 
exemplary  life  of  piety,  and  was  an  example  to  all  with  whom 
he  had  intercourse.  He  was  never  backward  in  reproving  sin, 
and  was  always  ready  to  give  a  testimony  of  his  hope  in  Christ. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

END  OF  THE  DECADE. 

Baltimore  Churches  in  1836 — Philadelphia  Conference  Increases — Western 
Churches — General  Conference  of  1836 — Revision  of  Discipline  for  Pub- 
lication—Rev. Edward  Waters  Elected  Bishop — Expansion  of  the  West- 
ern Field — Book  Concern  Being  Reduced  to  a  System— Church  Awakened 
— A  Petition  From  Canada  and  Buffalo  — Missionaries  Provided,  but  no 
Support — Decree  of  Publication  of  a  Quarterly  Magazine. 

THE  secretary  of  the  Baltimore  churches,  which  met  in  Con- 
ference in  1^36,  has  furnished  little  information  concerning 
their  labors  and  successes.  Brother  James  High,  steward 
of  the  Annual  Conference,  had  died  on  the  9th  of  April  of  this 
year.  He  was  the  successor  of  that  remarkable  man,  Charles 
Hackett,  who  was  the  successor  of  Don  Carlos  Hall,  who  took 
such  an  active  part  in  the  early  affairs  of  the  churches.  Like  his 
predecessors,  Brother  High  was  a  layman.  He  had  filled  the 
office  of  Conference  steward  for  several  years.  Jeffrey  Goulden 
and  Basil  Simms  were  ordained  as  deacons,  the  former  as  itin- 
erant, the  latter  local. 

This  year  closed  the  second  decade  of  the  history  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  we  find  the  number  of  circuits 
to  be  six  and  the  number  of  stations  two.  The  itinerants  num- 
bered four:  Rev.  Edward  Waters  was  pastor  of  the  Baltimore 
city  church  and  the  Baltimore  County  Circuit;  Rev.  Samuel 
Todd  was  pastor  of  the  church  at  Washington;  Rev.  John 
Cornish  was  pastor  of  the  Columbia  Circuit  churches,  and  Rev. 
Henry  Turner  was  assistant.  The  same  preachers  were  pastors 
of  the  Chambersburg  Circuit.  Three  circuits,  Lewistown,  Easton 
and  Frenchtown,  were  destitute  of  pastors.  The  total  number 
of  members  was  two  thousand. 

The  decision  must  be  that,  comparing  1836  with  1826,  the  Bal- 
timorean  churches  had  lost  ground.  This  at  least  appears  from 
the  recorded  facts.  In  1826  there  were  seven  pastors,  now  re- 
duced to  four.  In  1826  Frederick  Circuit  had  ten  appointments, 
which  were  reduced  to  three  ten  years  later.  Harrisburg  Circuit 
had  lost  one  appointment,  having  had  nine  in  1826.  Easton  and 
Frenchtown  Circuits  made  no  report  of  their  condition,  so  that 

(109) 


110 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


we  are  unable  to  know  whether  they  were  abandoned  entirely 
or  not.  In  1826  the  preachers1  support  amounted  to  four  hundred 
and  forty-eight  dollars.  It  was  but  three  hundred  and  forty-two 
dollars  and  nineteen  cents  in  1836.  But  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe  that  this  retrogradation  was  due  chiefly  to  the  influence 
of  slavery. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  of  this  year,  which  met  on  the 
10th  of  May,  immediately  at  the  close  of  the  General  Conference, 
showed  an  increase,  especially  when  we  consider  that  the  western 
work  had  been  set  off  in  a  district  by  itself  within  the  decade, 
and  that  then  the  total  of  members,  including  the  western  work, 
reached  4,606,  with  sixty-five  churches  and  fourteen  pastors, 
while  now  the  total  of  members,  with  the  western  work  omitted, 
reached  3,344.  There  were  but  eight  pastors  in  the  Philadelphia 
District  for  1830,  but  they  received  a  total  of  four  hundred  and 
seventy  dollars  and  eighty-two  cents  in  salaries,  while  the  four- 
teen had  received  but  a  few  cents  over  six  hundred  and  fourteen 
dollars  in  1826. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  of  1836  admitted  Henry  C. 
Turner  as  an  itinerant  preacher,  and  David  Ware,  Moore,  Walker, 
Thomas  Pierce,  Jacob  Adams,  Robert  8.  Holcom  and  Andrew 
Radder  in  a  loeal  capacity.  This  year  we  find  the  record  of  the 
death  of  Joseph  M.  Corr,  on  the  18th  of  October,  1835,  in  the 
twenty-ninth  year  of  his  age.  Thus  another  gap  was  made  in 
the  ranks  of  the  early  pioneers. 

The  Church  had  unbounded  confidence  in  his  ability  as  a  man 
and  his  integrity  as  an  officer,  and  for  the  entire  period  of  his 
connection  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  the  day  of  his  death  he 
enjoyed  this  confidence,  not  only  unabated,  but  with  increasing 
volume  and  power.  When  a  mere  licentiate,  and  that,  too,  a 
local  one,  he  was  elected  to  the  secretaryship  of  the  Philadelphia 
Annual  Conference,  which  office  he  held  to  the  day  of  his  death. 
He  was  also  secretary  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  from  1826  till 
the  opening  of  1828,  when  he  ceased  to  act,  simply  because  en- 
gagements at  home  kept  him  away  from  that  district  till  1830. 
It  was  in  1826  that  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  passed 
a  resolution  constituting  him  secretary-general.  He  was  the  first 
one  who  gave  a  report  of  the  condition  of  the  book  concern,  and 
we  do  not  hear  of  the  existence  of  a  hymn-book  among  us 
until  he  reports  the  publication  of  a  thousand  copies  in  1835. 
As  a  general  book  steward,  all  things  considered,  no  one  has 


End  <>(  the  Decade. 


111 


yd  been  more  successful  than  he.  When  he  commenced  his 
Labors  in  the  hook  concern,  in  1832,  the  sum  of  twenty-eight 
dollars  was  all  his  capital,  hut  within  three  years  from  that  (late 
he  had  published  one  thousand  Disciplines,  one  thousand  hymn- 
books  and  two  thousand  minutes  of  the  three;  Conferences,  and 
reported  about  three  hundred  and  sixty  dollars  in  stock  and  cash 
as  clear  profits. 

The  representatives  of  tin'  New  York  churches  assembled  on 
the  4th  day  of  June  in  this  year.  lit.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  and 
Rt.  Rev.  Richard  Waters  were  present  as  the  Leaders  of  tlx;  delib- 
erations. The  items  of  husiness  were  few.  The  total  number  of 
the  members  in  the  churches  was  seven  hundred  and  forty-three. 
Financially  considered,  they  did  as  well  as  the  other  districts  in 
their  moneys  raised  for  their  three  pastors,  the  combined  salaries 
being  three  hundred  and  thirteen  dollars  and  thirty-eight  cents. 
Over  one  hundred  and  seventeen  dollars  were  raised  as  contin- 
gent money.  Eight  points  are  given :  New  York  City,  Brooklyn, 
Flushing,  South  Huntington,  John's  Cove,  Hempstead  Harbor, 
South  Jamaica  and  Albany.  Sampson  Peters  was  received  as  a 
probationer  into  the  traveling  connection.  This  was  all,  yet  we 
cannot  say  that  the  district  had  improved  to  a  great  extent. 

Over  two  months  later  we  find  the  Pittsburg  or  western 
churches  assembling,  through  their  representatives,  in  Columbus, 
Ohio.  But  it  seems  that  little  had  been  done  during  the  year 
for  the  Redeemer's  cause.  The  statistics  give  a  total  of  one 
thousand  one  hundred  and  thirty-one  members  in  Society  at  the 
t  wo  stations  and  on  the  five  circuits.  At  this  time  Pittsburg  and 
Cincinnati  were  the  only  stations,  while  the  circuits  consisted  of 
the  Zanesville,  Chillicothe,  Hillsboro,  Richmond  and  Uniontown. 
These  together  gave  a  contingent  collection  of  nearly  one  hun- 
dred and  sixteen  dollars.  There  were  seven  traveling  preachers 
doing  the  work  in  this  Western  District. 

We  have  seen  the  work  of  the  individual  districts,  and  can 
now  turn  for  a  view  of  the  General  Conference  of  1836,  which, 
as  we  have  intimated,  held  its  session  in  Philadelphia  in  May, 
immediately  preceding  the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual 
Conference. 

There  were  sixteen  traveling  preachers  present:  Rt.  Rev.  Mor- 
ris Brown,  Edward  Waters,  Richard  Williams,  William  Cornish, 
John  Cornish,  Israel  Scott,  John  Churlson,  Moses  Robinson, 
William  Moore,  Jeremiah  Miller,  Samuel  Todd,  John  Boggs, 


112 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Richard  Robinson.  William  P.  Quinn,  Thomas  Lawrence  and 
Samuel  G.  Clingman.  The  delegates  were:  Six  from  the  Phila- 
delphia Conference — Clayton  Durham.  Walter  Proctor,  Shadrack 
Bassett,  Sampson  Peters  and  Jeremiah  Durham;  three  from  the 
Baltimore  Conference — Nathaniel  Peck,  Stephen  Smith  and 
Levin  Lee ;  three  from  the  New  York  Conference — London  W. 
Turpin,  George  Hogarth* and  Edmund  Crosby;  and  two  from  the 
Western  Conference — Abraham  D.  Lewis  and  George  Coleman. 

This  body  reviewed,  amended  and  revised  the  Discipline  for 
publication.  George  Hogarth,  of  Brooklyn.  X.  Y..  was  elected 
the  general  book  steward  of  the  Connection  for  the  ensuing 
four  years,  to  fill  the  place  of  the  deceased  .Joseph  M.  Corr.  Res- 
olution- were  passed  in  order  that  the  book  concern  might  be 
benefited  and  its  usefulness  enlarged.  The  general  book  steward 
was  t<>  be  permitted  to  "publish  such  religious  books,  tracts  and 
pamphlets  as  may  be  deemed  best  for  the  interests  of  the  Con- 
nection, the  profits  arising  therefrom  always  to  flow  into  the 
genera]  book  treasury,"  but  it  was  stipulated  that  such  work 
would  be  undertaken  only  "upon  the  recommendation  of  the 
book  committee,  with  the  concurrence  of  the  New  York  Annual 
Conference."  He  was  also  to  be  "allowed  twenty-five  dollar-  for 
revising  and  publishing  the  hymn-book  and  Discipline." 

The  time  had  arrived  when,  on  account  of  the  spread  of  the 
work  of  the  Church,  and  the  extensive  labors  which  this  exten- 
sion called  upon  the  Bishop  to  perform,  the  Conference  was 
moved  to  consider  the  matter  of  selecting  "an  associate  to  take 
part  with  him  as  a  junior  Bishop/'  The  labor  entailed  upon 
Bishop  Morris  Brown  alone  seemed  to  render  it  imperative  that 
such  a  step  be  taken,  and,  too,  the  best  interests  of  the  Connec- 
tion in  promoting  the  general  cause  of  the  societies  seemed  to 
demand  aid  in  the  burdensome  work.  It  was  finally  decided 
that  such  a  junior  or  assistant  Bishop  shoultl  be  elected,  and  as  a 
result  Rev.  Edward  Waters  was  the  one  upon  whom  the  mantle 
of  that  position  fell,  and  he  was  solemnly  ordained  a  Bishop  of 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  on  the  8th  of  May,  1836, 
by  the  imposition  of  the  hands  of  the  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  and 
several  elders  present. 

The  same  year  of  his  election  Bishop  Brown  took  him  with 
him  to  all  the  Conferences  except  the  Western  Conference,  thus 
giving  him  some  idea  of  the  field  of  labor.  After  this  tour  he 
never  left  the  regions  of  Baltimore  only  to  attend  the  Philadel- 


End  of  tin  Decadi . 


113 


phia  and  New  York  Conferences,  which  was  once  a  year.  He 
never  presided  in  an  Annual  Conference  only  as  a  silent  looker-on, 
assistant  of  Bishop  Brown,  and  though  he  sat  in  the  episcopal 
chair  from  1836  to  1844,  lie  never  ordained  a  single  minister,  not 
even  a  deacon.  The  second  year  after  his  election  he  requested 
the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  to  locate  him.  Indeed,  ever 
after  his  ordination  he  held  charge  of  the  Ellicott  Mills  Circuit, 
and  sometimes  of  Bethel,  in  Baltimore.1  In  the  eighth  year  of 
his  episcopate  he  resigned  his  episcopal  authority,  although  he 
was  able  to  travel  as  a  Bishop,  and  returned  to  the  ranks  of  the 
effective  elders  till  his  death.  This  was  occasioned  by  the  wicked- 
ness of  some  rude  white  men  who  ran  over  him  with  their  horse 
and  buggy,  which  accident  he  survived,  but  lingered  only  a  few 
weeks,  wThen  he  finished  his  days  in  peace,  in  the  month  of  April, 
1847,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  Maryland. 

There  was  a  resolution  that  no  preacher  should  be  permitted 
"to  graduate  into  ministerial  functions  who  is  and  continues  to 
be  a  member  of  a  Freemason's  Lodge."  The  futility  of  such  a 
resolution  is  apparent  on  its  face.  No  church  has  ever  yet  been 
able  to  expunge  Freemasonry  from  among  its  ministry  and  laity. 
It  has  been  repeatedly  tried,  not  only  by  this,  but  by  almost 
every  other  church  in  Christendom,  but  without  success.  The 
members  of  the  Conference  knew  nothing  about  the  order  beyond 
its  existence,  and  to  pass  such  a  resolution  was  to  enact  a  rule 
which  they  could  never  carry  into  effect.  Subsequent  facts  have 
shown  this  to  be  true.  , 

As  a  summary  of  the  work  at  the  end  of  the  second  decade, 
we  see  that  in  1826  there  were  twenty-one  itinerant  ministers ;  in 
1836,  thirty-two;  in  1826  there  were  ninety-five  churches;  in  1836, 
eighty-six;  the  fourteen  circuits  of  1820  were  reduced  to  twrelve 
in  1836,  but  the  members,  which  in  1826  were  six  thousand  nine 
hundred  and  four  in  number,  had  increased  to  seven  thousand 
five  hundred  and  ninety-four,  and  from  one  station  we  had  seven 
to  report  at  this  time.  Salaries,  too,  had  increased  from  a  total 
of  S562.51J  to  $926.39. 

At  the  end  of  this  second  decade  of  the  history  of  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  we  see  some  things  to  humble  us 
and  others  to  make  us  to  rejoice.  We  are  humbled  in  seeing  the 
decline  of  the  affairs  of  both  the  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia 
Conferences,  respecting  the  extent  of  their  wrork  and  the  number 
8 


114 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


of  their  workmen,  for  they  had  less  of  both  in  1836  than  they 
possessed  in  1826.  The  delinquency  of  the  Ohio  or  Western 
District  is  also  painful.    Yet  we  have  reason  to  rejoice : 

First,  because  the  western  field — the  regions  west  of  the  Alle- 
ghanies — had  expanded  itself  from  a  mere  adjunct  into  an  inde- 
dent  Conference  District,  embracing  three  stations,  the  same 
number  of  circuits,  and  seven  laborers  to  cultivate  them.  And 
secondly,  because  the  Connection  had  its  eyes  opened  upon,  and 
its  attention  also  turned  to,  the  instruction  of  the  rising  genera- 
tion and  the  cause  of  temperance.  Thirdly,  the  mind  of  the 
ministry  had  also  begun  to  reduce  their  book  concern  to  a  system. 
The  book  concern  was  removed  from  Philadelphia  to  New  York 
or  Brooklyn  as  a  result  of  the  election  of  Rev.  George  Hogarth, 
local  deacon,  to  the  office  of  general  book  steward,  as  his  resi- 
dence was  in  Brooklyn,  where  he  conducted  mercantile  operations 
with  Hayti. 

When  the  Baltimore  Conference  met  in  1837  nothing  of  interest 
took  place,  except  the  resolution  to  aid  in  raising  a  general  fund 
for  the  relief  of  worn-out  preachers,  but  the  Philadelphia  Confer- 
ence, which  convened  in  Philadelphia  on  the  20th  day  of  May, 
was  one  of  unusual  interest.  It  seems  to  have  been  animated  by 
a  spirit  of  light  and  comprehensiveness  unknown  to  it  before. 

As  in  the  Baltimore  Conference,  so  in  this,  a  society  was  formed 
auxiliary  to  the  general  fund.  There  were  four  ordinations: 
Revs.  Clayton  Durham,  Jeremiah  Beulah  and  William  Moore  as 
elders,  and, Brother  John  C.  Spence  as  a  deacon.  Two  local 
preachers,  namely,  Abraham  Bell  and  Jackson,  were  numbered 
with  the  dead.  Of  the  former  it  is  said  that  "  he  was  a  man  truly 
devoted  to  God,  and  left  this  world  in  full  assurance  of  a  blessed 
immortality ;  of  the  latter  it  is  written  that  he  was  "  greatly 
esteemed  for  his  unexceptionable  fidelity." 

This  Conference  was  visited  by  William  Yates,  Esq.,  a  lawyer 
from  the  city  of  Troy,  New  York,  agent  of  the  A.  A.  S.  Society, 
and  Rev.  Joshua  Leavitt,  then  editor  of  the  New  York  Evangelist. 
Both  were  cordially  received,  and  both  ably  and  kindly  addressed 
the  assembled  ministry  on  the  important  subjects  of  education 
and  temperance.  After  the  address  of  lawyer  Yates,  the  Confer- 
ence passed  a  resolution  of  thanks  "  for  his  able  and  thrilling- 
address,"  and  as  an  evidence  of  how  deeply  moved  it  had  been, 
we  find  a  subjoined  resolution  that  there  should  be  a  "  committee 
of  five  appointed  to  draft  some  resolutions  to  offer  to  the  house," 


End  of  the  Decade. 


115 


and  on  the  morning  of  the  next  clay  this  committee  made  the 
following  report: 

1.    The  Ministry. 

We,  the  elders  and  preachers  of  this  Conference,  who,  according  to  our 
ability  and  the  grace  that  hath  been  given  to  us,  have  in  our  day  preached 
the  Gospel  to  our  scattered  and  rejected  brethren,  sensible  that  like  those 
who  have  gone  before  us,  the  time  of  our  departure  will  come  also  when 
we  must  give  an  account  of  our  stewardship,  would  enter  upon  the  minutes 
of  this  Conference  an  expression  of  grief  at  the  withering  effects  of  preju- 
dice against  color,  and  in  connection  with  it  the  deep  solicitude  we  feel 
that  those  who  will  hereafter  rise  to  fill  our  places  should  possess  the 
means  of  securing  every  qualification  for  the  ministry,  that  they  may  be 
workmen  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed,  rightly  divining  the  word  of  truth. 
Upon  this  it  is  evident  that  the  salvation  of  souls  and  the  right  instruction 
of  the  Church  in  the  means  of  grace  depend.  Besides,  the  general  im- 
provement of  the  people  of  color,  their  advances  in  knowledge  and  mutual 
cultivation,  render  it  necessary  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  our  Rt.  Rev.  Father  and  Bishop,  with  such  person  or  per- 
sons as  he  may  associate  with  him,  be  a  committee  to  prepare,  or  cause  to 
be  prepared,  an  appeal  or  statement  of  the  condition  and  wants  of  the 
Church  of  Christ  among  the  people  of  color  in  regard  to  the  ministry,  and 
the  obstacles  which  embarrass  candidates  for  that  office  in  obtaining  suit- 
able preparations,  and  often  hinder  access  even  to  the  ordinary  means  of 
education. 

That  the  committee  lay  the  same  before  the  presidents  and  officers  of 
colleges  and  theological  seminaries  in  the  free  states,  with  a  respectful 
entreaty  that  the  advantages  of  education  which  their  respective  institu- 
tions afford  may  be  extended  to  all  persons  alike,  without  distinction  of 
color. 

And  further,  that  the  Bishop  or  committee,  by  correspondence  with 
brethren  throughout  the  United  States,  with  Christian  philanthropists, 
by  appeals  from  the  pulpit  and  press,  and  by  all  suitable  means,  endeavor 
to  awaken  a  general  interest  amongst  ourselves  and  friends  on  this  impor- 
tant subject,  viz.:  a  suitable  preparation  for  the  pulpit  or  ministry. 

2.  Education. 

Resolved,  That  as  education  is  the  only  sure  means  of  creating  in  the 
mind  those  noble  feelings  which  prompt  us  to  the  practice  of  piety,  virtue 
and  temperance,  and  elevate  us  above  the  condition  of  brutes  by  assimi- 
lating us  to  the  image  of  our  Maker ;  we,  therefore,  recommend  all  our 
preachers  to  enjoin  undeviating  attention  to  its  promotion,  and  earnestly 
request  all  our  people  to  neglect  no  opportunity  of  advancing  it,  pledging 
ourselves  to  assist  them  so  far  as  it  is  in  our  power. 

3  Temperance. 

Resolved,  That  our  elders  and  preachers,  in  their  labors  to  promote  the 
cause  of  temperance,  hold  up  the  principle  of  total  abstinence  from  the 


116 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


use  as  a  beverage  of  all  intoxicating  drinks  as  the  true  and  safe  rule  for  all 
consistent  friends  of  temperance  to  go  by,  and  as  in  accordance  with  our 
Discipline  and  the  resolutions  of  our  former  Conferences. 

The  remainder  of  the  report  was  upon  two  topics  of  such  im- 
portance that  we  append  it  also: 

Punctual  Attendance  at  Meetings. 
Resolved,  That  the  elders  and  ministers  of  our  Connection  do  see  that 
the  rules  of  our  Discipline  be  duly  observed  in  regard  to  the  prompt  and 
punctual  attendance  at  the  times  and  places  appointed  for  worship  ;  because 
a  habit  of  loitering  on  the  way  to  meeting,  coming  in  after  the  regular 
hours,  or  after  the  exercises  have  begun,  is  extremely  hurtful  and  injuri- 
ous. 

Dress  and  Cleanliness. 
Resolved,  That  the  elders  and  ministers  of  our  Church  warn  the  people, 
not  only  in  regard  to  extravagance  and  useless  ornaments  and  dress,  as 
our  Discipline  enjoins,  but  against  a  slovenly  and  ragged  appearance, 
which  some  unhappily,  and  we  believe  unconsciously,  are  not  careful  to 
avoid,  than  which  nothing  perhaps  does  more  to  perpetuate  the  prevailing 
aversion  and  prejudice  against  color.  The  malignity  of  prejudice,  we  be- 
lieve, would  be  much  abated  if  our  people  were  more  careful,  in  their 
persons  and  dress,  to  appear  neat  and  cleanly. 

This  report  was  followed  up  by  another  resolution,  which  said: 

That  the  members  of  this  Conference,  from  a  sense  of  duty  to  ourselves, 
our  people,  and  our  friends,  would  express  feelings  of  affection  and  grati- 
tude for  those  noble  men  who  have  extended  their  privileges  of  education 
in  their  institutions  of  learning  to  all  alike,  without  distinction  of  color, 
and  trust  the  time  will  soon  come  when  over  the  doorway  to  every  school 
of  science  and  literature  in  the  country  will  be  inscribed  the  Gospel 
principle,  "  Ho,  every  one  that  thirsteth,  come." 

It  is  to  be  noted  for  the  sake  of  those  who  see  only  the  broader 
privileges  extended  throughout  the  Northern  institutions  over 
fifty  years  later,  that  at  that  early  period  there  were  but  three 
institutions  for  higher  education  to  which  young  men  and 
young  women  of  color  then  had  access.  These  were  Oberlin 
College,  in  Ohio;  Gettysburg  Seminary,  in  Pennsylvania;  and 
Oneida  Institute,  in  Central  New  York. 

We  also  find  a  record  of  a  more  general  interest  in  outside 
matters  pertaining  to  the  race.  Two  delegates,  Rev.  David  Ware 
and  Richard  Robertson,  were  sent  to  the  "Mental  and  Moral 
Reform  Society,"  and  Rev.  Shadrack  Basset t  and  Noah  C.  Can- 
non were  delegated  to  the  "Philadelphia  Association,"  while 
there  is  noted  the  invitation  to  the  members  of  Conference  to 
visit  the  "Orphan  Asylum  for  Colored  Children." 


End  of  the  Decade. 


117 


That  the  Church  was  becoming  aroused  to  its  necessities  is 
evident;  that  it  had  awakened  to  a  full  sense  of  these  necessities 
is  not  so  apparent.  There  were  opponents  to  education,  and 
especially  the  education  of  the  ministry,  within  its  own  ranks, 
though  there  were  exceptions  to  the  attitude  these  took.  Bishop 
Morris  Brown  was  always  in  favor  of  education  in  the  pulpit  as 
well  as  out  of  it. 

The  10th  of  June  Drought  together  the  ministry  of  the  New 
York  churches,  and  found  Bishops  Brown  and  Waters  presiding 
over  their  deliberations,  the  most  important  of  which  had  refer- 
ence to  church  extension;  for  a  petition  was  received  from  St. 
Catherine's,  Canada  West,  and  from  Buffalo,  asking  pastoral  care. 
As  a  result,  resolutions  were  passed  to  send  missionaries  thither, 
and  that  they  be  "  appointed  to  go  into  Canada  and  the  western 
part  of  the  state  of  New  York,  to  explore,  and,  as  far  as  possible, 
organize  and  regulate  what  Societies  they  can  in  these  regions," 
with  the  added  provision  "  that  they  shall  be  subject  to  the  order 
of  the  Bishops,  and  amenable  to  the  Annual  Conference  of  the 
Newr  York  District,  and,  as  far  as  possible,  under  the  advice  and 
patronage  of  any  charitable  institutions  established  for  mission- 
ary purposes."  But  no  provisions  were  made  for  their  support 
for  the  work  other  than  spiritual,  in  setting  apart  a  day  "for  pub- 
lic prayer  and  supplication  to  Almighty  God  for  the  spread  of 
the  Gospel  and  the  success  of  the  missionaries." 

Willis  Jones  and  Caesar  Springfield  were  admitted  on  trial  as 
local  preachers,  and  Joshua  Jenkins  was  received  into  full  con- 
nection. Samuel  Peters  and  Samuel  Edwards  were  ordained, 
the  former  an  elder,  the  latter  a  deacon. 

The  book  concern  was  looked  after  by  the  election  of  Benjamin 
Croger,  Samuel  Edwards,  H.  C.  Thompson  and  Eli  N.  Hall  as  a 
book  committee  to  aid  the  general  book  steward  in  its  manage- 
ment. The  Conference  decreed  the  publication  of  a  quarterly 
magazine  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  Connection  as  another 
step  toward  the  exercise  of  what  literary  talent  might  be  found 
among  the  members.  * 

*In  conversation  with  Rev.  Richard  Robinson  many  years  ago,  he  in- 
formed the  writer  that  he  was  the  author  of  the  motion  to  publish  a  mag- 
azine. During  its  publication  no  preacher  in  the  Connection  was  more 
active  in  selling  the  magazine  or  the  minutes  of  the  Annual  Conference. 
He  was  in  the  habit  of  taking  bundles  of  them  when  on  his  pastoral 
visits,  and  selling  them  among  his  flock.  There  was,  too,  an  association  of 
Anti-Slavery  Christians  organized  about  that  time  in  the  state  of  New 


118 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  New  York  Conference  for  1837  reported  810  members 
within  its  bounds,  and  but  one  was  reported  among  the  dead  of 
the  year:  James  Thompson,  70  years  of  age. 

As  to  the  Ohio  churches,  the  representatives  assembled  in  the 
city  of  Columbus,  Ohio,  on  the  26th  of  August,  1837.  They 
were  thirteen  in  number,  and  consisted  of  nine  elders,  one  dea- 
con and  two  licensed  preachers,  with  Bishop  Brown  at  their 
head,  and  Owen  T.  Burton  Xickens,  secretary. 

Several  resolutions  commendatory  of  temperance  and  educa- 
tion were  introduced,  considered  and  adopted.  In  the  report  of 
the  churches,  that  at  Pittsburgh  showed  a  membership  of  225, 
and  that  at  Cincinnati,  146.  The  churches  of  Uniontown  Cir- 
cuit reported  187,  Zanesville  and  Columbus  had  respectively 
203  and  212.  Richmond  Circuit  gave  in  160;  Chillicothe,  204, 
and  Hillsborough,  170.  The  total  membership  thus  shown  in 
1837  for  the  Ohio  Conference  was  1,507. 

John  Caves,  Claiborne  Yancy  and  Turner  Roberts  were  ad- 
mitted on  trial;  Fayette  Davis  and  Samuel  G.  Clingham  into 
full  connection.  Job  Dundy  withdrew  from  the  church,  while 
Elijah  Brown  had  finished  his  ministerial  career  gloriously  and 
gone  to  his  reward  in  heaven. 

The  work  of  the  year  1838  was  opened  by  the  meeting  of  the  min- 
isters who  watched  over  the  interests  of  the  Baltimore  churches, 
in  the  city  of  Washington,  D.  C,  April  22d.  They  were  but  ten 
in  number,  over  whose  deliberations  Bishop  Brown  presided,  as- 
sisted by  Bishop  Waters.  John  F.  Cook  was  secretary.  Bishop 
Brown  did  not  forget  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  the  preachers 
the  importance  of  encouraging  education  among  themselves,  and 
especially  among  the  rising  generation.  This  was  followed  by  a 
resolution  making  it  the  duty  of  the  preachers  to  deliver  an  address 
on  education  in  each  of  their  congregations  once  a  quarter.  The 
different  points  of  moral  reform  were  also  touched  upon. 

York,  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  teachers  and  a  missionary  to  take 
charge  of  the  social,  intellectual  and  religious  condition  of  the  fugitives 
from  American  slavery  who  had  taken  refuge  in  Canada.  Rev.  Hiram 
Wilson  was  the  first  sent  over  from  the  state  of  New  York  for  that  pur- 
pose. His  wife  was  Miss  Harriett  Hubbard,  ^\ho  married  him  in  East 
Troy,  New  York,  for  the  special  purpose  cf  aiding  him  in  his  truly  benev- 
olent task.  The  writer  knew  her  as  teacher  of  the  colored  school  which 
was  held  in  the  basement  of  the  church  of  which  he  then  was  pastor.  She 
was  a  woman  of  uncommon  faith  and  powerful  in  prayer,  well  suited  to 
be  the  wife  of  a  missionary. 


End  of  the  Decade. 


One  peculiar  phase  of  our  early  work  is  laid  bare  to  the  gaze 
of  the  Christian  world  to-day  in  a  portion  of  the  closing  resolu- 
tions where  thanks  were  tendered  for  tin;  mercies  of  the  session. 
It  is  exhibited  in  all  its  simple  pathos  in  the  closing  words: 
"Also  to  the  mayor  and  city  authorities  and  citizens  of  Wash- 
ington generally,  for  their  kindness  and  hospitality,  and  for  our 
safe  and  peaceful  session." 

Samuel  Todd  and  Joshua  Gilbert  were  reported  among  the 
dead,  and  we  find  a  time  set  for  the  commemoration  of  their 
deaths,  "as  a  mark  of  our  regard  and  affection."  Rev.  Stephen 
Smith  was  ordained  a  local  elder,  and  Brother  John  Jordan  a 
deacon.  A  change  was  made  in  adding  to  the  Columbia  Circuit 
Lewistown,  in  Mifflin  County,  and  the  entire  number  of  mem- 
bers in  Society  within -the  Conference  bounds  was  set  at  two 
thousand  six  hundred  and  ninety-nine. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  eleven  ministers 
were  present,  and  Bishop  Browvn  was  alone  in  the  presidency  of 
this  body.  There  was  a  vigorous  and  kindly  spirit  animating 
the  whole  body,  as  seen  in  the  journal  for  the  session,  yet  there 
was  nothing  of  moment  done,  and,  with  the  exception  of  learning 
that  the  churches  embraced  in  this  district  numbered  no  less 
than  four  thousand  two  hundred  and  forty-four  souls,  there  is 
nothing  deserving  especial  note. 

In  the  New  York  Conference  for  this  year,  which  met  in  New 
York  City  on  the  9th  of  June,  1838,  we  find  both  Bishops  again 
present,  with  fourteen  other  ministers,  traveling  and  local. 
Among  its  first  acts  was  one  tending  to  correct  habits  of  sloven- 
liness in  attire  by  attaching  a  penalty  to  any  preacher  who 
might  appear  in  other  than  proper  and  becoming  apparel  while 
attending  Conference.  It  was  by  no  means  a  trivial  matter, 
whether  viewed  as  a  habit  to  be  corrected  or  an  erroneous  opinion 
to  be  rectified — thinking  it  a  mark  of  Christian  humility  to  be 
clad  meanly  as  a  beggar,  or  of  worldly  pride  to  appear  in  the 
costume  of  a  gentleman. 

Rev.  Richard  Williams,  who  was  the  missionary  sent  out  by 
the  previous  Conference  to  explore  the  regions  of  western  New 
York  and  Canada,  for  the  purpose  of  planting  churches  wherever 
the  head  of  the  Church  should  open  an  effectual  door,  made  his 
report.  It  appeared  that  he  had  established  a  Society  at  Roch- 
ester, consisting  of  twenty-six  persons,  and  also  licensed  a  local 
preacher  to  watch  over  their  spiritual  interests.    He  had  also 


120 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


planted  one  at  Buffalo,  with  thirty-one  members,  and  licensed 
two  local  preachers.  From  thence  he  proceeded  to  Canada  West, 
where  he  had  an  interview  with  the  civil  authorities,  and,  ob- 
taining their  sanction,  then  established  one  Society  at  Niagara 
of  twenty-two  members,  one  at  St.  David's  of  twenty-nine  mem- 
bers, and  one  at  St.  Catherine  of  forty,  at  which  place  he  also 
licensed  two  local  preachers. 

To  this  Conference  there  was  a  delegate  by  the  name  of  Daniel 
Laing,  sent  from  Boston  with  a  petition  that  a  preacher  should 
be  sent  to  found  our  Connection  in  that  place;  but  Conference 
refused  to  comply  with  their  request  unless  they  would  give 
assurances  of  their  ability  and  willingness  to  support  the  preacher 
who  might  be  sent.  Before  adjournment  Conference  received 
a  reply  from  the  brethren  at  Boston,  declaring  that  they  were 
prepared  to  sustain  a  preacher,  or  at  least  to  give  him  the  sum 
of  seventy-five  dollars. 

Rev.  Edmund  Crosby  was  received  into  the  itinerancy  with  a 
view  to  go  as  missionary  to  the  West,  and  was  afterwards  or- 
dained an  elder  for  the  same  object.  Eli  N.  Hall,  by  petition  of 
the  trustees  and  people  of  New  Haven,  was  ordained  a  deacon, 
to  serve  the  interests  of  that  church,  at  the  same  time  that 
Brother  George  Weir  was  ordained  a  deacon  to  serve  the  Buffalo 
Society.  Israel  Scott,  who  had  located  in  the  interim  of  Con- 
ference, was  again  united  to  the  itinerancy. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  following  sum  that  not  much  was 
done  by  the  three  Conferences  through  their  auxiliaries  for  the 
••  general  fund, " "as  the  entire  amount  raised  was  just  three  dollars 
and  seventy-nine  cents. 

Excepting  the  passage  of  two  resolutions  affecting  the  cause  of 
education  and  temperance,  nothing  of  importance  was  done  by 
the  ministry  of  the  Ohio  Societies  in  the  year  1838  beyond  the 
answers  due  disciplinary  questions.  We  find  that  Rev.  Wiley 
Reynolds  withdrew  from  the  Connection,  and  Rev.  David  Smith 
returned  to  it.  Two  deaths  had  occurred — Brothers  Job  Case 
and  'Squire  Ford.  Of  the  latter  we  find  it  said  that  "he  was 
born  in  the  state  of  Virginia,  where  he  labored  extensively  in 
the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  with  the  most  abundant  success.  In 
1834  he  moved  to  Cincinnati,  where  lie  again  commenced  his 
labors  with  renewed  energy,  until  it  pleased  the  Lord  to  trans- 
plant him  from  the  Church  militant  to  the  Church  triumphant." 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

GROWTH  WESTWARD  AND  IN  CANADA. 

Measures  for  the  Improvement  of  the  Ministry— Plan  to  support  the  Book 
Concern — Plan  for  Replenishing  the  General  Fund  Approved — General 
Recapitulation — Philadelphia  Statistics — Admission  of  Willis  Nazrey  into 
the  Itinerancy — Increase  of  Numbers — Birth  of  the  Canada  and  Indiana 
Conferences— Canadian  Work — Slim  Support  for  Preachers — The  Year 
1840  was  a  Remarkable  One— A  Golden  Opportunity  to  secure  Fruits  of 
our  Missionary  Labors. 

IN  the  year  1839  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  proceeded 
to  take  some  measures  for  the  improvement  of  the  ministry, 
when  it  met  April  27th,  in  Baltimore,  to  report  and  regulate 
the  affairs  of  the  respective  charges.  A  record  of  this  attempt  is 
found  in  the  following  form:  "That  any  person  applying  for 
license  to  exhort  or  preach  shall  be  examined  before  the  Quarterly 
Meeting  Conference  touching  his  acquaintance  of  the  Articles  of 
Faith  and  Doctrines  of  the  Christian  Religion  taught  in  our  Dis- 
cipline, and  if  he  gives  satisfaction  thereon,  he  may  have  a  trial. 
And  the  preacher  in  charge  shall  appoint  a  committee  of  three  or 
five  preachers  to  hear  him  and  judge  his  abilities,  and  report  to 
the  ensuing  Quarterly  Meeting  Conference."  In  this  the  Annual 
Conference  placed  the  exhorter  and  the  preacher  on  the  same 
footing,  not  noting  that  as  the  exhorter  is  never,  allowed  to  take 
a  text,  he  therefore  does  not  need  the  literary  furniture  which 
is  required  in  the  preacher.  If,  however,  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence had  rigidly  obeyed  this  rule  given  them  by  the  Annual  Con- 
ference, the  result  would  have  been  an  advance  of  many  degrees 
in  intelligence. 

Rev.  Jeffry  Goulden  and  Rev.  Thomas  Henry  were  ordained 
elders,  and  John  Vozart  deacon.  It  was  decided  that  the  "elders 
in  charge  nominate  the  delegates  who  shall  attend  the  General 
Conference,"  and  this  was  followed  by  the  motion  which  made 
N.  Peck  a  delegate  from  Baltimore  city,  Levin  Lee  and  John  But- 
ler for  Washington  City,  Stephen  Smith  for  Columbia,  Pa.,  and 
John  Jordan  for  Easton,  Md.  The  number  of  members  in  the 
Baltimore  District  this  year  was  two  thousand  one  hundred  and 
thirty. 

(121) 


* 


122 

» 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


But  it  was  left  for  the  Philadelphia  Conference  of  this  year  to 
make  most  marked  advance  in  its  spirit  of  liberality  and  free- 
dom as  is  evinced  by  its  deeds.  Fourteen  elders,  four  deacons, 
and  fifteen  preachers  composed  the  number  which  so  showed  its 
zeal  and  wisdom.  From  the  first  it  opened  its  doors  to  the  free 
ingress  of  the  people.  It  expressed  its  sympathy  with  their 
enslaved  brethren  and  its  thanks  to  those  who  were  laboring  for 
their  emancipation.  It  set  to  work  and  formed  plans  to  raise 
funds  for  the  support  of  the  hook  concern.  These  plans  made  it 
the  duty  of  all  traveling  preachers  to  collect  from  every  member, 
through  their  leaders,  two  cents  per  month,  or  six  cents  a  quarter, 
the  amount  thus  collected  to  be  reported  to  every  Quarterly 
Meeting  Conference,  and  transmitted  to  the  general  book  steward, 
requiring  his  receipt  for  the  same,  to  he  entered  upon  the  minutes 
of  the  next  ensuing  Quarterly  Conference.  And  lastly,  it  pro- 
vided that  the  minutes  of  each  Quarterly  Meeting  Conference 
touching  the  subject  of  the  first  duty  of  all  traveling  preachers 
mentioned  in  the  plan,  should  be  sent  to  the  next  Annual  Con- 
ference, the  delinquent  preacher  to  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  Annual 
(  onferenee,  for  the  benefit  of  said  fund,  the  sum  of  five  dollars, 
this  amount  to  he  taken  from  the  amount  of  his  salary  returned 
at  the  General  Conference.  The  men  who  drew  up  this  report 
embracing  this  plan  were  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  general  book 
steward,  of  Brooklyn.  N.  Y..  Rev.  John  Vogart  and  Rev.  John 
Cornish.  The  only  objectionable  feature  in  this  plan  was  that 
relating  to  the  last  provision.  It  was  impracticable  because  of 
the  indisposition  of  those  authorized  to  inflict  the  penalty  upon 
the  delinquents. 

For  several  reasons,  which  may  be  apparent  upon  perusal,  the 
following  address  at  this  time  is  worthy  of  a  place  in  our  history 
without  abridgment.  It  was  undoubtedly  the  composition  of 
the  then  general  book  steward,  Rev.  George  Hogarth  : 

Beloved  in  the  Lord  : 

The  undersigned  take  this  opportunity  to  lay  before  you  the  claims  of 
our  aged,  sick  and  worn-out  traveling  preachers,  many  of  whom  have  spent 
the  prime  of  their  life  in  your  service,  counting  their  time,  their  talents, 
and  even  life  itself  not  dear  to  them,  but  have  rather  sacrificed  all  earthly 
comfort  and  family  in  obedience  to  the  heavenly  mandate  requiring  them 
to  go  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature,  and  to 
compel  poor  sinners  to  come  to  the  bounteous  table  of  the  Lord.  You 
have  heard  them.  Your  souls  have  been  made  to  rejoice  within  you  while 
sitting  under  the  pleasing  strains  and  arguments  that  dropped  from  their 


Growth  Westward  and  in  Canada. 


L23 


lips  from  time  to  time  in  calling  sinners  to  repentance,  and  in  pointing 
the  mourner  to  the  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world. 
But  recollect  that  they  are  in  the  flesh  ;  age,  infirmity,  and  all  these  debil- 
ities incident  to  mortality  have  crept  upon  them,  and  they  are  now  thrown 
upon  the  charities  of  the  general  Church  for  support  the  few  remaining 
days  they  have  to  linger  in  this  evanescent  state.  To  you,  therefore,  dear 
brothers,  the  Church,  in  behalf  of  these  ancient  worthies  and  veterans  of 
the  Cross,  speaks  in  loud  and  urgent  tones  for  a  little  pittance  to  sustain 
them  the  few  remaining  days  of  their  probation.  And  shall  this  appeal  to 
you,  dear  brethren,  be  in  vain?  We  trust  not,  but  feel  encouraged  with 
the  pleasing  thought  that  you  will  not  suffer  the  righteous  to  be  forsaken, 
nor  see  his  seed  begging  bread.  The  profits  arising  from  the  sale  of  all 
books  published  by  the  general  book  steward  are  applied  to  the  above  pur- 
pose; and  all  donations  of  money,  etc.,  directed  to  him  at  Brooklyn,  New 
York,  for  that  purpose,  will  be  thankfully  received  and  carefully  applied. 

The  claims  of  our  young  men,  too,  for  aid  to  sustain  them  while  they 
are  preparing  themselves  for  the  ministry  (that  they  may  become  approved 
workmen  in  the  Lord's  vineyard)  are  urged  upon  you,  as  the  future  pros- 
perity of  the  Church  and  of  generations  to  come  is  dependent  upon  the 
care  we  now  take  in  raising  up  suitable  teachers  for  our  people  well  quali- 
fied in  every  respect.  We,  therefore,  sincerely  trust  that  you  will  unhesi- 
tatingly lend  us  your  aid,  dear  brethren,  in  this  laudable  cause,  as  it  is  no 
other  than  the  cause  of  God. 

To  our  white  friends,  upon  whom  Providence  has  smiled  with  all  that 
nature's  bounty  can  afford — to  you,  poor  Ethiopia's  sons  and  daughters 
look  with  long  desires  for  the  day  when  you  will  take  her  cause  at  heart, 
and  aid  her  young  men  on  in  the  ministry  that  she  may  in  due  time  be 
able  to  stretch  forth  her  hands  to  God.  You  will  observe,  by  carefully 
perusing  these  minutes,  that  the  wants  of  our  Church  are  many  and  urgent 
upon  us  at  present,  and  call  loudly  for  aid  from  the  charitable  part  of  the 
community,  many  of  whom  stand  ready,  we  believe,  to  assist  in  raising  the 
character  and  standing  of  the  ministry  of  our  Church.  All  aid  for  the 
above  purpose  will  be  gratefully  received  and  duly  applied  if  directed  to 
our  general  book  steward,  Brooklyn,  New  York. 

We  would  remind  our  brethren  throughout  the  Connection,  as  Metho- 
dists, to  bear  in  mind  the  22d  day  of  October  next  as  the  Hundredth  Anni- 
versary of  Methodism,  and  as  it  is  a  special  day  set  apart  by  all  the  Meth- 
odist churches  in  Europe  and  America  as  one  of  gratitude  and  praise  to 
God,  we,  therefore,  trust  that  all  of  our  brethren,  in  all  of  our  churches, 
will  be  careful  strictly  to  observe  it  in  worshipping  and  praising  God  for 
his  bounteous  goodness. 

Morris  Brown,  ) 
Edward  Waters.  J  B%shoP8' 
George  Hogarth, 
Brooklyn,  New  York,  August  1st,  1839.  General  Book  Steward. 

The  foregoing  is  the  first  document  of  the  kind  which  has  been 
chronicled  by  our  secretaries,  and,  like  the  pastoral  letters  of  1826, 


124 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


which  were  undoubtedly  the  composition  of  Rev.  Joseph  M. 
Corr,  was  an  evidence  of  what  incalculable  use  and  benefit  are 
cultivated  minds  to  act  as  guides  in  our  ecclesiastical  movements. 
It  is,  too,  the  first  appeal  in  behalf  of  ministerial  support  at  a 
time  when  they  were  most  in  need  of  it.  It  is  also  the  first  offi- 
cial effort  in  favor  of  ministerial  education. 

The  recommendation  to  observe  the  centenary  of  Methodism 
is  also  an  evidence  of  enlarged  views  of  ecclesiastical  relations 
and  obligations.  It  also  shows  the  strength  of  our  attachment 
to  our  noble  Mother  Church  in  England;  for  it  was  not  a  cen- 
tenary of  American  Methodism,  but  of  Methodism,  that  is,  Eng- 
lish Methodism  expanded  over  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe. 

Notice  was  taken  for  future  consideration  of  another  point 
bearing  upon  broad  interests — that  of  free  labor  produce.  Next 
followed  the  election  of  delegates  to  the  General  Conference  of 
1840.  They  were  seven  in  number,  and  embraced  the  following 
named  brethren :  William  Henry,  of  West  Chester,  for  West 
Chester;  Thomas  Banks,  of  Snow  Hill,  N.  J.,  for  Burlington; 
Benjamin  Wilkens,  of  Philadelphia,  for  Salem;  Jeremiah  Dur- 
ham, of  Philadelphia,  for  Trenton;  David  Ware,  of  Philadelphia, 
for  Bucks  County  ;  Walter  Proctor  and  Shadrack  Bassett,  of  Phil- 
adelphia, for  Philadelphia. 

The  Hurst  Street  Church,  with  its  pastor  and  membership, 
was  received  into  the  Connection.  Alexander  Davis,  Robert 
Collins,  Berry  W.  Wilkens  and  Henry  Brightman  were  received 
on  trial  as  local  preachers,  and  Isaac  Parker  as  an  itinerant. 
Thomas  Bowser,  "a  local  preacher  and  an  exemplary  Christian," 
was  numbered  with  the  dead.  The  round  numbers  in  this  dis- 
trict were  4,304. 

The  loth  of  June,  1839,  beheld  the  pastors  of  the  New  York 
churches  convened  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn  to  examine  their 
affairs  and  to  adjust  certain  difficulties.  Bishop  Brown  was 
assisted  by  Bishop  Waters.  The  former's  recommendation  urg 
ing  the  members  "to  live  in  unanimity,  peace,  and  brotherly 
love,"  was  much  needed,  for  charges  of  "riot  and  schism" 
and  other  troubles  threatened  to  disturb  the  desired  harmony. 
The  field  of  labor  in  this  district  was  enlarged  by  the  planting 
of  a  church  in  Lockport,  Western  New  York ;  one  in  Toronto, 
one  in  Maiden,  one  in  Hamilton  and  Brandford,  Upper  Canada; 
also  one  in  Boston,  Mass.,  and  one  in  Providence,  R.  I.  So  that, 
while  Satan  was  inciting  evil  in  the  churches  in  one  direction, 


fi mirth    U'rsttranl  <ni(l  in  Omtfulu. 


125 


Christ  Jesus,  the  Redeemer,  was  carrying  on  the  victories  of  his 
cross  in  another.    Asa  Jeffry  was  ordained  a  deacon. 

Brother  Abrani  Marks,  for  many  years  an  ordained  deacon, 
was  cnt  down  by  the  Bcyttoe  of  death  in  L838.  He  is  Bpoken 
of  as  a  "staunch  supporter  of  the  doctrines  of  Christ,"  and  as 
going  about  "  for  many  years  doing  good."  The  delegates  elected 
to  the  General  Conference  were  five  in  number:  Rev.  Eli  N.  Hall, 
Rev.  Benjamin  Croger,  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  Rev.  Samuel  Ed- 
wards and  N.  C.  W.  Cannon. 

There  was  some  trouble  at  Rah  way,  N.  J.,  factions  having 
arisen,  and  the  church  there  had  been  taken  possession  of  by 
one  body  under  the  name  and  title  of  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church.  This  called  forth  a  resolution  "to  assist  our 
brethren  at  Rah  way  with  all  the  means  in  our  power  to  bring 
those  intruders  to  justice." 

The  plan  for  replenishing  the  General  Fund,  which  was  adopted 
by  the  Philadelphians,  was  approved  by  this  Conference,  and  the 
usual  resolutions  recommending  education,  temperance  and  fast- 
ing, and  denouncing  lottery  dealers,  were  discussed  and  adopted. 
This  body  also  reviewed  and  put  into  a  more  practical  form  some 
resolutions  passed  by  the  Philadelphia  Conference  in  relation  to 
dispensing  of  books,  pamphlets,  etc.,  which  produced  "no  inter- 
est to  the  Connection,"  and  such  sales  in  our  churches  and  at  our 
altars  were  forbidden  "without  permission  from  the  elder  in 
charge,  with  the  concurrence  of  a  committee  whom  he  shall 
choose  to  examine  them." 

The  New  York  Conference  of  1839  reported  the  total  number 
of  members  in  these  churches  to  be  1,222. 

The  minutes  of  the  Ohio  or  Western  Conference  for  this  year 
cannot  be  found,  but  a  general  recapitulation  of  members  for 
the  four  districts  for  the  last  four  years  gives  the  following: 


Ohio.   Philadelphia.   Baltimore.   New  York.  Total. 


1836  

  1,131 

3,344 

2,052 

743 

7,270 

1837  

  1,507 

3,443 

2,345 

810 

8,105 

1838  

  1,817 

4,044 

2,794 

1,053 

9,708 

1839  

4,479 

2,300 

1,222 

8,001 

The  annual  transactions  of  the  ministry  of  the  Baltimore 
churches  for  the  next  year  (1840)  were  of  very  little  interest,  as 
may  be  seen  by  the  following  synopsis  of  its  proceedings  in  ses- 
sion, beginning  April  16th : 

Henry  Brightman  was  received  on  trial,  and  Isaac  Parker  was 


126 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


referred  to  the  Philadelphia  Conference.  Rev.  William  A. 
Nichols  was  elected  instead  of  Brother  John  Butler  as  dele- 
gate to  the  approaching  General  Conference.  The  preachers 
were  requested  to  solicit  one  cent  pet  month  from  each  member 
in  their  respective  charges  to  aid  the  General  Fund.  They 
were  also  " enjoined  to  encourage  the  principles  of  education 
and  temperance." 

The  year  1840  was  the  year  of  General  Conference,  and  as 
exact  an  account  as  possible  of  the  churches  should  be  furnished. 
The  Baltimore  churches  showed  an  increase  in  membership  in 
some  way  over  the  preceding  year,  as  we  find  a  total  of  2,636 
members.  The  amount  of  salaries  paid  for  the  year  was  $437.87; 
the  moneys  collected  for  contingent  expenses  reached  $152.33, 
and  a  total  of  twenty-eight  itinerant  preachers  was  reported. 
There  was  also  a  slight  increase  in  the  Philadelphia  District 
membership,  as  it  reached  4. noli,  with  a  total  of  salaries  amount- 
ing to  8665. 2J^.  The  contingent  moneys  summed  up  8201.45, 
including  860.50  from  the  Daughters  of  Conference.  The  num- 
ber of  preachers  was  not  reported. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  was  opened  May  23d.  Its  trans- 
actions were  characterized  by  lack  of  vigor,  though  from  what 
cause  we  are  unable  to  say.  Education  and  temperance  received 
the  usual  attention,  while  lotteries  were  condemned,  and  reso- 
lutions passed  dealing  severely  with  those  preachers  who  had 
anything  to  do  with  them,  even  to  expulsion  from  the  Connec- 
tion as  a  final  sentence.  Some  property  transactions  were 
authorized,  and  the  trustees  of  Lewiston,  Delaware,  were  to  part 
with  such  a  portion  of  the  ground  belonging  to  that  church  as 
they  might  think  proper  for  the  benefit  of  the  church.  The 
trustees  of  Indian  River  Church,  in  the  same  state,  were  "to 
grant  a  deed  of  exchange  for  a  piece  of  ground  better  situated 
for  the  church  in  that  place.  Brother  David  Ware  was  offered 
for  the  office  of  deacon,  and  was  ordained.  Two  ministers  had 
died;  one,  Brother  Simon  Murray,  died  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-six.  He  was  a  "  faithful  minister,"  and  the  same  who 
was  pastor  of  the  Hurst  Street  Church  at  the  time  of  its  annex- 
ation to  our  Connection;  the  other,  Rev.  Jeremiah  Miller,  died 
in  his  seventy-third  year.  He  was  one  of  the  brave  and  hardy 
pioneers  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  a 
"  faithful  itinerant." 

In  the  year  1840  a  new  agent  of  power  was  introduced  into  the 


Growth  Westward  and  In  Canada. 


127 


body  of  the  New  York  Conference;  yea,  more,  into  the  very 
vitals  of  the  Connection.  The  brethren  of  this  district,  con- 
vened this  year  on  the  L3th  of  June,  in  the  city  of  New  York. 
Bishop  Morris  Brown  presided,  and  the  person  who  was  to  con- 
stitute this  agent  of  power  was  no  other  than  that  remarkable 
man,  Willis Nazery,  who  applied  for  admission  into  tin;  itinerant 
ranks,  and  having  passed  a  fair  exam i nation  was  put  on  his 
probation.  Probably  no  one  thought  that  in  twelve  years  from 
that  day,  and  in  that  very  house,  he  would  be  elected  and  or- 
dained one  of  the  Bishops  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  and  one  of  its  most  efficient.*  There  was  nothing 
striking  in  the  physique  of  Brother  Nazery  but  his  height,  which 
was  about  six  feet  and  two  inches;  nor  was  there  anything 
remarkable  in  his  speech  to  arrest  the  attention  of  the  beholder 
and  cause  one  to  predict  his  future  elevation,  for  all  his  sermons 
and  conversation  were  commonplace.  It  was  his  activity,  his 
promptness  and  general  force  of  character  that  made  the  place 
for  him. 

A"  missionary  for  all  the  New  England  states  was  appointed  in 
the  person  of  Rev.  N.  C.  W.  Cannon — a  very  important  and  hon- 
orable commission.  The  preachers  of  this  Conference  were 
obligated  by  a  resolution  to  preach  four  sermons  during  the  year 
on  the  subject  of  education,  and  to  take  up  collections  for  Sun- 
day-schools. 

Brothers  Shepherd  Holcomb  and  E.  N.  Hall  were  admitted 
on  trial,  and  Brother  George  Ware  passed  into  full  connection. 
Brothers  Joshua  Jenkins  and  Edward  Thompson  were  ordained 
deacons  in  a  local  capacity,  and  Brother  Eli  N.  Hall  an  elder. 

Again  we  find  a  slight  increase  in  members,  as  reported  from 
the  New  York  churches  for  1840.  Including  the  work  in  Upper 
Canada  and  the  missions  in  New  England — Providence,  R.  L; 
Boston,  Mass.;  and  Springfield,  Mass.,  we  find  the  number  to  be 
1,276,  The  salaries  amounted  to  $593.34,  while  contingent  col- 
lections, with  donations  from  Daughters  of  Conference,  amounted 
to  $175.73 ;  $29.22  were  also  sent  in  by  the  pastors  of  the  mis- 
sions, circuits  and  stations  for  the  General  Fund. 

Brother  Asa  Jeffrey,  who  was  ordained  a  deacon  at  the  last 
session  of  this  Conference,  had  fallen  this  year.    Like  the  two 

*  He  was  elected  and  ordained  at  the  same  time  with  the  writer.  Sub- 
sequently, in  1856,  he  emigrated  to  the  British  Province  of  Canada  West, 
and  became  the  first  Bishop  of  the  British  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 


128 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


mentioned  in  the  Philadelphia  Conference  as  having  departed, 
Brother  Jeffrey  was  a  man  advanced  in  years,  being  in  his  sev- 
entieth year  at  his  death.  He  had  been  admitted  into  this 
Annual  Conference  in  1837,  and  his  ordination  as  deacon,  as  will 
be  remembered,  in  the  year  1839,  was  for  the  benefit  of  our  people 
at  Lockport.  For  many  years  he  had  been  a  member  and 
preacher  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  He  is  mentioned 
by  Rev.  George  Hogarth  as  a  "man  of  exemplary  piety,"  and  it 
was  because  of  "his  deep  interest  for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  his 
own  people"  that  he  came  to  the  conclusion,  four  years  previous 
to  1  lis  death,  to  become  attached  to  our  Church,  and  thereby 
become  wholly  identified  with  us,  being  satisfied  that  it  afforded 
the  best  opportunity  of  doing  the  most  spiritual  good  among  us. 
Old  and  infirm  as  he  was,  "  he  was  truly  zealous  for  the  promo- 
tion of  His  kingdom,"  as  was  evinced  by  his  effort  to  serve  the 
church  at  Lockport.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Miller,  one  whom  we 
noticed  in  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  was  a  member  of  the 
New  York  Conference  when  he  died,  and  this  body  gives  excel- 
lent testimony  concerning  his  life  and  character.  For  twenty- 
three  years  he  had  been  a  member  of  our  Church,  and  the  Lord 
had  blessed  him  abundantly  in  his  labors  in  the  ministry.  He 
was  a  "  very  peculiar  man  in  his  manners  and  deportment,'-  we 
are  told,  yet  it  is  added  that  "  wherever  he  traveled,  like  the 
apostles  of  our  Heavenly  Master,  the,  observer  could  identify  in 
him  the  marks  of  the  suffering  and  dying  of  his  Lord  and  Mas- 
ter." Indeed,  we  find  him,  just  before  yielding  up  his  life,  a 
strong  worker  in  his  protracted  meetings,  and  "adding  about 
sixty-four  souls  to  the  Church  as  a  seal  to  his  ministry." 

By  the  order  of  the  General  Conference  held  this  year  two 
more  Annual  Conferences  were  brought  into  existence — the  Upper 
Canada  and  the  Indiana,  and  from  this  point  we  date  the  organ- 
ization of  our  Canadian  work.  The  Upper  Canada  Conference  was 
organized  by  the  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown,  in  the  city  of  Toronto, 
July  21st,  1840.  It  was  a  fit  place  for  such  an  important  move- 
ment, first,  because  of  the  beauty  of  the  place,  whose  location  is 
on  the  western  banks  of  Lake  Ontario,  whose  waters  seem  to 
reflect  the  deep  azure  of  that  heaven  in  which  the  church  trium- 
phant is  now  rejoicing,  and  to  which  the  church  militant  is  now 
hastening;  second,  because  the  inhabitants  of  this  city  were  pos- 
sessed  of  such  a  magnanimous  and  generous  spirit  shown 
towards  the  down-trodden  descendants  of  Africa  when  they  sought 


Growth  Westward  and  in  Canada, 


129 


an  asylum  from  the  cruelties  of  the  "Fugitive  Slave  Law"  of 
these  United  Stales;  and  third,  because  it  has  always  been  the 
great  scat  of  Learning  and  Christian  benevolence  Cor  the  western 
portion  of  British  America. 

As  to  the  particular  manner  in  which  this  Conference  was 
organized,  nothing  appears  on  the  face  of  the  minutes.  There 
were  twelve  members  of  this  first  Conference.  Elder  Edmund 
Crosby,  missionary  to  Canada  West,  and  the  assistant  of  the 
Bishop,  Deacon  George  Weir,  of  Rochester,  X.  Y.,  with  the  fol- 
lowing preachers,  all  of  whom  were  residents  of  Canada  West: 
William  Edwards,  Samuel  Brown,  James  Harper,  Alexander 
Hemsley,  Jeremiah  Taylor,  Daniel  D.  Thompson,  Peter  O'Banyon, 
Jacob  Horsey  and  Henry  Bullard.  Brother  Weir  was  chosen  as  its 
secretary,  and  was  ordained  an  elder,  also,  at  this  Conference. 
Daniel  D.  Thompson  and  Peter  O'Banyon  were  admitted  on 
trial,  and  Samuel  Brown  into  full  connection,  while  he,  with 
James  Harper,  William  Edwards  and  Alexander  Hemsley,  was 
afterwards  chosen  and  ordained  deacon,  after  which  Samuel 
Brown  was  ordained  to  the  office  of  an  elder.  This  suspension 
of  the  law  of  the  church  was  manifestly  to  serve  some  useful  end. 
The  Conference  embodied  in  the  work  of  its  first  session  reso- 
lutions against  the  use  of  ardent  spirits  and  encouraging  to  the 
foundation  of  temperance  societies.  It  also  resolved  that  all  its 
preachers  should  preach  expressly  in  favor  of  education,  and  , 
everywhere  encourage  it.  Sabbath-schools  were  to  be  established 
wherever  possible,  and  the  first  Friday  of  each  year  was  to  be 
set  apart  as  a  day  of  fasting,  thanksgiving  and  prayer  to  Almighty 
God  for  the  general  progress  of  the  Gospel  throughout  the  world, 
and  for  the  prosperity  of  our  Connection,  the  first  failure  to  ob- 
serve the  same  to  cause  the  preacher  offending  to  be  amenable  to 
the  next  Annual  Conference. 

The  circuits  designated  as  St.  Catharine's,  Brantford,  London 
Circuit  and  the  West,  together  with  Toronto  Station,  gave  a  total 
of  two  hundred  and  fifty-six  members  in  Society,  and  they  were 
manned  by  preachers  stationed  as  follows :  William  Edwards  was 
sent  to  Toronto  Station,  James  Harper  was  sent  to  London  Cir- 
cuit and  the  West,  Jeremiah  Taylor  was  appointed  to  Brantford 
Circuit,  and  Alexander  Hemsley  was  sent  upon  St.  Catherine's 
Circuit. 

From  this  organized  beginning  in  new  territory  we  turn  to  the 
9 


130 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Western  Conference — the  Ohio,  or  Pittsburg,  as  it  was  sometimes 
called.  It  opened  its  deliberations  in  the  city  of  Pittsburg  on 
the  fifth  day  of  September  (1840),  with  the  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown 
presiding.  There  were  seven  elders,  six  deacons,  and  six  preach- 
ers present.  Mr.  John  B.  Vashon,  a  layman,  was  chosen  as  its 
secretary,  and  the  usual  resolutions  on  temperance,  education, 
Sunday-schools,  the  book  concern  and  slavery  were  passed.  That 
we  may  note  the  utterance  of  the  Ohio  ministry  of  that  period 
upon  this  last-named  question,  we  present  the  resolution  : 

We,  the  members  of  this  Conference,  are  fully  satisfied  that  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Gospel  are  arrayed  against  all  sin,  and  that  it  is  the  duty  of 
all  Christians  to  use  their  influence  and  energies  against  all  systems  that 
rudely  trample  under  foot  the  claims  of  justice  and  the  sacred  principle  of 
revelation.  And  whereas,  slavery  pollutes  the  character  of  the  Church  of 
God,  and  makes  the  bible  a  sealed  book  to  thousands  of  immortal  beings, 
therefore, 

Resolved,  That  we  will  aid  by  our  prayers  those  pious  persons  whom  God 
has  raised  up  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  dumb  until  every  fetter  shall  be 
broken,  and  all  men  enjoy  the  liberty  which  the  Gospel  proclaims. 

The  Conference  reported  a  total  of  two  thousand  four  hundred 
and  forty-eight  members  in  Society,  a  considerable  increase  over 
the  last  report  given  in  1828,  when  the  numbers  reached  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventeen.  The  appointments  at 
this  Conference  were  as  follows:  Thomas  Lawrence  to  Pittsburg 
Station,  Henry  Addenson  to  Cincinnati  Station,  Fayette  Davis 
to  Chillicothe  Circuit,  Simon  Ratcliffe  and  M.  M.  Clark  to  Hills- 
boro  Circuit,  George  Coleman  to  Zanesville  Circuit,  George  John- 
son to  Richmond  Circuit,  Samuel  G.  Clinghman  to  Uniontown 
Circuit,  Charles  H.  Peters  to  Columbus  Circuit,  Major  T.  Wilker- 
son  to  Urbana  Circuit.  Austin  Jones  to  Massilon  Circuit.  Robert 
Johnson  was  transferred  to  the  second  new  Conference  formed 
this  year — the  Indiana  Conference. 

This  Conference  was  organized  at  a  place  called  Blue  River,  in 
Indiana,  October  2d,  1840,  when  twenty-one  ministers  assembled 
for  that  purpose,  and  conducted  its  deliberations.  The  elders 
were  Rev.  William  P.  Quinn,  Henry  Addenson,  Thomas  Law- 
rence, Fayette  Davis,  Jeremiah  Thomas;  the  deacons,  Rev.  George 
W.  Johnson,  Claiborne  Yancy,  Robert  Johnson  and  M.  J.  Wil- 
kerson;  the  preachers,  Robert  Jones,  Nathan  Ward,  Daniel  Wins- 
low,  Shadrack  Stewart.  Henry  Tryon,  Matthew  T.  Newsom, 
Benjamin  Hill,   Willis  R.  Revels,  Matthew  Sawyers,  Thomas 


Growth  Westward  and  in  Canada, 


L31 


Winmon,  Benjamin  Scipworth.  Henry  Addenson  was  made 
Bishop  Brown's  assistant  in  the  absence  of  Bishop  Waters,  and 

Major.).  Wllkerson  was  chosen  secretary. 

All  the  preachers  mentioned  above,  excepting  the  first  three, 
were  received  on  trial,  together  with  M.  M.  Clark,  and  out  of  the 
whole  list  only  Robert  Jones,  Shadrack  Stewart  and  Benjamin 
Hill  were  itinerants. 

M.  T.  Newsom  was  transferred  to  the  Ohio  Conference  this 
year  under  Major  J.  Wilkerson.  A  total  of  one  thousand  one 
hundred  and  sixty-eight  in  Society  was  reported  from  the  dif- 
ferent circuits,  which  included  Brooklyn  Circuit  in  Illinois.  It 
was  a  meager  support  which  the  preachers  and  elders  obtained 
that  year,  as  the  entire  sum  only  reached  $234.88,  to  be  divided 
into  six  portions,  in  sums  ranging  from  thirty  dollars  to  fifty, 
but  it  did  better  than  the  Canada  Conference  in  its  contingent 
money,  collecting  $45.50,  while  the  former  collected  $9.25;  yet 
the  Indiana  Conference,  upon  its  organization,  had  twenty-one 
members  representing  one  thousand  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight 
in  Society,  while  the  Canada  Conference  had  twelve  members 
representing  two  hundred  and  fifty-six  in  Society.  With  nearly 
five  times  the  number  in  Society,  and  nearly  double  the  number 
of  members,  it  raised  nearly  five  times  the  amount — small  though 
the  larger  sum  was.  Claiborne  Yancy  was  ordained  an  elder 
at  this  Conference,  and  the  preachers  were  appointed  as  follows: 
George  W.  Johnson  to  Richmond  Circuit,  Robert  Jones  to  Indian- 
apolis Circuit,  Shadrack  Stewart  to  Terre  Haute  Circuit,  and 
William  P.  Quinn  and  Benjamin  Hill  were  sent  to  Brooklyn 
Circuit,  Illinois,  and  at  the  same  time  all  these  circuits  were 
placed  under  the  oversight  of  Elder  Quinn. 

The  year  1840  was  not  only  remarkable  for  the  organization  of 
new  Conferences,  but  also  for  its  literary  movement ;  for,  by  the 
statement  of  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  who,  at  this  time,  was  the 
general  book  steward,  the  idea  of  publishing  a  magazine  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Connection  was  considered  and  discussed  at  the 
Annual  Conferences  of  this  year.  The  General  Conference,  too, 
was  held  this  year  in  the  city  of  Baltimore,  but  not  a  vestige  of 
the  proceedings  is  handed  down  to  us.  It  is  certain  that  the 
minutes  were  never  published,  and  we  are  led  to  infer  that  the 
terror  of  slaveholders  led  to  this  death-like  silence. 

Another  circumstance  which  renders  this  a  notable  year  was 
the  fact  that  the  last  opportunity  for  securing  the  fruits  of  the 


132 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


labors  of  our  three  missionaries*  to  Hayti  was  lost  through  want 
of  zeal,  tact,  and  missionary  enterprise,  as  will  be  evident  from 
the  following  occurrence  in  the  New  York  Annual  Conference 
the  following  year  (1841).  It  seems  that  while  the  Conference 
was  progressing  in  the  examination  of  characters,  Rev.  George 
Hogarth,  the  secretary,  impeached  Rev.  Charles  A.  Spiccr"for 
having  accepted  an  invitation,"  at  the  Annual  Conference  of 
L839,  to  become  part  of  a  delegation  from  this  Connection  to  a 
Convention  of  Methodists  which  was  to  meet  in  the  month  of 
December  last,  in  the  city  of  Port-au-Prince,  capital  of  the 
Republic  of  Hayti,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  themselves  into 
a  religious  body  of  that  denomination  in  that  republic;  and  our 
Bishop,  as  he  understood,  had  received  an  invitation  from  that 
country  to  send  such  a  delegation  to  that  convention,  that  our 
Connection  might  be  represented  in  the  formation  of  that  body 
of  Christians  in  that  country.  But  Brother  Spicer,  instead  of  going 
to  Port-au-Prince,  as  he  offered  himself,  went  to  Europe,  contrary 
to  the  expectation  of  the  Bishop  and  the  Conference,  and  de- 
prived this  Connection  of  being  represented  in  that  convention, 
which  has  given  another  denomination  of  Methodists  in  this 
country,  in  opposition  to  ours,  the  ascendency  in  the  hearts  and 
feelings  of  that  body  of  Christians,  they  having  been  well  repre- 
sented there,  f 

*  Brothers  Scipio  Beanes,  Richard  Robinson  and  Isaac  Miller. 

t  While  this  is  true,  it  was  so  at  that  time.  Fifty  years  later  our  Church 
is  found  to  have  a  new  hold  upon  that  island,  and  bids  fair  to  wield  im- 
mense power  in  future. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


CLOSING  YEARS  OF  THE  FIRST  PERIOD. 

Proper  Observance  of  the  Sabbath— Ordination  of  Willis  Nazrey  and 
Others — Canada  Conference — Promising  Growth— Baltimore  Conference 
of  1842— Willis  Nazrey  Admitted  into  Full  Connection — Action  in  Favor 
of  Missions— News  from  the  Haytian  Methodist  Church — Action  of 
Conference— Educational  Interests  Looked  After — D.  A.  Payne's  Pre- 
amble and  Resolution  in  Behalf  of  Ministerial  Education — Financial 
Embarrassment  of  the  Boston  Church — Providence  Prays  for  Independ- 
ent Existence  as  a  Station. 

FOR  the  first  time  the  ministers  of  the  Philadelphia  District 
held  their  annual  meeting  before  that  of  Baltimore  was 
convened,  and,  as  we  enter  the  year  1841,  we  find  its  pro- 
ceedings the  first  to  note. 

They  assembled  in  the  City  of  Brotherly  Love  April  10th,  as 
usual,  with  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  presiding,  and  Rev.  John 
Boggs  his  assistant  in  Bishop  Water's  absence.  Sixty  members 
made  up  the  body — fifteen  elders,  twenty  deacons  and  twenty- 
four  preachers.  Six  men  were  admitted  on  trial — Thomas  W. 
Jackson,  Samuel  Murray,  George  Greenly,  Lewis  J.  Conover, 
John  Butler  and  Wardle  W.  Parker.  Seven  were  received  into 
full  connection — James  Burton,  Benjamin  Wilkins,  Robert  Col- 
lins, John  Anderson,  Nathaniel  Murray,  Ishmael  Berry  and 
Isaac  Parker.  The  last  named  and  Samuel  Murray  were  or- 
dained deacons.  Rev.  Adam  Clincher  had  died  in  the  seventieth 
year  of  his  age.  He  is  spoken  of  as  a  "man  of  exemplary  piety 
and  zealous  in  his  Master's  cause." 

The  proper  observation  of  the  Sabbath  Day  w^as  touched  upon 
in  a  resolution  instructing  elders  and  preachers  having  charge  of 
circuits  or  stations  to  see  that  no  preacher  or  minister  keeps 
open  shop,  oyster  or  eating-house,  or  shaving-shop  on  that  day. 
Another  resolution  was  to  the  effect  that  any  member  of  this 
Conference  failing  to  discharge  the  duties  incumbent  upon  him 
relative  to  the  instruction  of  children  should  be  amenable  to  the 
Annual  Conference  for  his  dereliction  of  duty. 

The  trouble  in  carrying  out  this  resolution  lay  in  the  fact  that 
they  would  admit  men  into  the  itinerancy  who  had  neither  tal- 

(  133  ) 


134 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


ents,  nor  culture,  nor  taste,  which  could  get  them  to  become  suffi- 
ciently interested  in  the  Sabbath-school  to  become  themselves  in- 
structors of  the  children  and  youths  who  were  growing  up  daily 
under  their  eyes.  For  lack  of  pastors  qualified  to  oversee  and 
cherish  Sunday-schools,  hundreds  of  the  most  talented  and  in- 
telligent children  of  Methodist  parents  have  forsaken  us  and 
united  themselves  with  the  Presbyterians  and  Episcopalians, 
wrhose  ministers  have  been  sufficiently  educated  to  be  earnest 
workers  in  the  Sabbath-schools  of  all  the  cities  on  the  Atlantic 
coast,  from  New  Haven  down  to  Washington,  D.  C.  t 

It  is  to  be  observed  that,  as  the  statistics  are  compared  with 
the  annual  returns  for  the  preceding  year  (1840),  there  is  a  de- 
crease in  members  in  Society  amounting  to  four  hundred  and 
seven,  as  the  report  returns  but  4,252  against  4,659  in  1840.  Up 
to  this  time  the  increase  for  the  five  years  previous  had  been 
slight,  still  it  was  an  increase  ;  but  there  is  no  reason  assigned 
for  such  a  decrease  as  occurs  this  year. 

Both  Bishops  were  present  at  the  Conference  of  the  Baltimore 
District,  which  assembled  May  8th,  1841.  There  were  in  addi- 
tion nine  elders,  seven  deacons  and  ten  preachers.  Five  preach- 
ers were  admitted  on  probation.  These  were  Benjamin  Boyes, 
John  L.  Armstrong,  Thomas  Hall,  Darius  Stokes  and  Win.  G. 
Brown.  Willis  Nazery  and  John  L.  Armstrong  were  ordained 
deacons,  and  Levin  Lee  was  ordained  an  elder. 

Numbered  among  the  dead  were  Brothers  Phaeton  Blake,  Jacob 
Howard  and  Southey  Hammond,  concerning  whom  we  learn 
nothing  more  than  that  they  "  died  in  the  triumphs  of  faith." 
It  is  a  pity  that  the  early  Annual  Conferences  did  not,  through 
intelligent  committees,  inquire  into  the  life  and  characters  of 
their  preachers  who  died,  and  report  such  a  sketch  of  their  lives  as 
would  give  them  the  credit  due,  and  at  the  same  time  render  their 
biographies  varied  and  interesting  as  they  should  be  truthful. 

The  churches  on  the  Columbia  Circuit  petitioned  the  Confer- 
ence to  detach  them  from  the  Baltimore  and  attach  them  to  the 
Philadelphia  District,  but  this  was  refused.  All  the  laymen  of 
the  churches  who  were  office-bearers  were  hereafter  to  be  admitted 
to  seats  in  Conference,  but  to  have  no  voice.  The  office  of  dis- 
trict book  steward  for  the  ensuing  year  was  filled  by  the  selection 
of  Brother  William  G.  Brown. 

The  statistics  show  a  decrease  of  membership  also  in  this  dis- 
trict, in  reporting  2,514  against  2,636  in  1840,  a  decrease  of  122. 


Closing  Years  of  the  First  Period. 


135 


At  this  time  there  were  in  the  Baltimore  Station  two  Sunday- 
schools,  embracing  two  hundred  and  eight  scholars  and  nineteen 
teachers.  The  sum  of  $31.99  was  raised  to  sustain  them.  Wash- 
ington City  Station  also  reported  two  schools,  in  which  were 
two  hundred  and  tour  children,  with  twelve  teachers,  and  $17 
raised  for  their  support.  Fell's  Point  had  no  school.  Columbia 
Circuit  reported  one  school,  three  teachers  and  thirty  scholars; 
Lancaster,  one  school,  three  teachers  and  twenty  scholars;  Car- 
lisle, one  large  school  in  a  prosperous  condition;  Gettysburg, 
and  Lewiston,  each,  the  same,  and  Baltimore  Station  reported 
one  day  or  common  school,  one  teacher  and  fifty  scholars.  This 
is  the  first  report  of  Sunday  and  common  schools  on  the  records 
of  our  Connection,  and  the  Conference  closed  its  deliberations  by 
pledging  themselves  to  sustain  common  and  Sunday-schools. 

The  business  growing  out  of  the  pastoral  relations  of  the  min- 
isters of  the  New  York  District  was  transacted  this  year  in  Brook- 
lyn, where  they  convened  the  29th  of  May,  1841.  Neither  one 
of  the  Bishops  were  present  at  the  opening,  and  we  learn,  inci- 
dentally, that  at  least  the  absence  of  one  (Bishop  Brown)  was 
due  largely  to  the  fact  that  he  must  attend  the  laying  of  the 
corner-stone  of  Bethel  Church,  in  Philadelphia,  which  ceremony 
was  to  take  place  June  2d. 

By  his  recommendation,  Brother  John  Boggs,  of  the  city  of 
New  York,  was  selected  as  chairman,  to  officiate  during  his  ab- 
sence, organize  the  Conference,  and  proceed  to  the  business  of 
examination  of  members.  Brother  Richard  Robertson  was  chosen 
his  assistant  and  Brother  Hogarth  was  made  secretary. 

Jabez  P.  Campbell  appears  here  for  admission,  with  Charles 
Burch,  on  trial  as  local  preachers.  The  former  also  applied  for 
itinerant  work,  but,  on  the  ground  of  his  feeble  health,  Confer- 
ence refused  the  application.  It  saw  fit,  however,  to  recommend 
him  as  one,  among  others,  who  might  be  ordained  a  local  deacon, 
at  the  discretion  of  Bishop  Brown,  and  that  he  or  another  might 
be  placed  at  Providence,  R.  L,  provided  the  Bishop  found  no 
preacher  there  already  ordained  when  he  should  visit  that  place 
in  the  interval  of  the  Conference.  An  irregular  petition  from 
"the  brethren"  at  New  Haven  for  the  ordination  of  Brother 
Burch  as  a  local  deacon  was  the  means  of  a  refusal,  as  it  pro- 
ceeded from  a  public  meeting  and  not  from  a  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence.   John  C.  Spence  was  also  located. 

Rev.  George  Weir,  laboring  in  the  Canadian  regions,  sent  in- 


136 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


formation  to  the  Conference  of  the  prosperity  of  the  chart  Ik  s 
under  his  pastoral  care,  and  expressions  of  the  good  feelings  of 
the  brethren  in  those  regions.  It  seems  that  the  Railway  Church 
was  still  in  pecuniary  embarrassment,  and  in  order  that  it  might 
be  extricated,  a  committee  was  appointed  for  the  purpose,  which 
was  to  act  in  conjunction  with  a  Philadelphia  committee. 

This  Conference  detached  the  Binghampton  Circuit  from  the 
Philadelphia  District  and  put  it  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
New  York  District.  We  find,  also,  that  aside  from  this  enlarge- 
ment it  made  an  appointment  for  the  Baltimore  District  by 
sending  Sampson  Peters  and  L,  Conover  upon  the  Columbia 
Circuit,  and  one  for  the  Philadelphia  District  also,  while  its  other 
appointments,  eight  in  number,  including  Binghampton  Circuit, 
were  filled  by  stationing  Clayton  Durham  on  Long  Island  Cir- 
cuit, John  Boggs  at  New  York,  Eli  N.  Hall  at  Albany,  Jeffry 
Goulden  at  Rochester,  George  Weir  at  Buffalo,  Charles  A.  Spicer 
on  the  Binghampton  Circuit,  and  X.  C.  W.  Cannon  on  to  Xew 
England  Mission.  The  Burlington  Circuit  of  the  Philadelphia 
District  was  supplied  by  Israel  Scott. 

In  a  financial  way,  we  find  a  decrease  in  the  amount  paid  for 
salaries,  as  compared  with  the  previous  year.  There  was  raised 
in  1*41.  $531.78,  while  the  sum  reached  in  1*40  was  $593.34. 
Contingent  collections  amounted  to  a  smaller  sum  as  well.  There 
was  an  effort  to  improve  the  finances  by  decreeing  that  "two 
cents  a  month  shall  be  collected  from  each  member."  We  find 
that  even  those  helpful  orders,  the  Benevolent  Daughters  of 
Conference  and  the  United  Daughters  of  Conference,  were  not 
able  to  reach  the  figures  of  the  previous  year  in  their  offerings, 
which,  united,  amounted  to  $72.47  this  year,  while  they  had 
presented,  in  1840,  $92.50.  But  if  the  financial  part  of  the  work- 
was  weaker  in  one  direction,  there  was  evidence  that  money 
could  be  raised  in  the  pledges  of  a  total  of  $56.50  from  X.  C.  W. 
Cannon,  Ric  hard  Robinson,  Eli  X.  Hall,  John  Boggs,  Charles  A. 
Spicer,  Isaac  Parker  and  the  Philadelphia  Church,  in  support  of 
the  new  enterprise,  which  was  to  make  this  Conference  noted  as 
giving  birth  to  the  first  literary  measure  known  in  the  history  of 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  It  did  this,  as  has 
been  already  intimated,  in  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  there  shall  in  future  be  a  magazine  published,  either 
quarterly  or  monthly,  for  he  benefit  of  the  Connection,  instead  of  the 
minutes. 


Closing  Vans  of  the  First  Period. 


137 


So  we  see,  even  though  we  find  a  decrease  in  the  member- 
ship in  the  churches  of  fifty-one,  that  then;  was  an  increase  in 
the  growing  intelligence,  which  would  push  forward  and  strive 
to  uphold  such  a  measure  in  the  face  of  objections  based  upon 
the  financial  disability  of  the  Connection. 

This  Conference,  too,  presents  the  first  instance  in  which  the 
report  of  the  general  book  steward  assumes  a  business-like  form, 
by  which  a  clear  view  of  the  whole  work  of  the  Conference  year 
is  given.  By  it  we  find  a  balance  in  favor  of  the  book  concern 
amounting  to  $1,318.54. 

The  Indiana  churches  held  their  Annual  Conference  in  Rush 
County,  on  Blue  River,  assembling  on  the  27th  of  August.  Kt. 
Rev.  Morris  Brown  presided,  and  Turner  Roberts  was  made  sec- 
retary. Only  two  elders  were  present,  William  P.  Quinn  and 
Thomas  Lawrence.  Elder  Quinn  was,  by  motion,  made  an  as- 
sistant to  Bishop  Brown,  as  Bishop  Waters  was  again  absent. 
Thomas  Elsworth,  Allen  Graham,  Benjamin  Coals  and  William 
Douglas  were  admitted  on  trial,  and  the  first  named  and  the  last 
were  also  ordained  deacons.  Robert  Jones  was  elected  to  the 
office  of  an  elder  and  Benjamin  Hill  was  located.  Elder  Quinn 
was  appointed  by  Bishop  Brown  as  presiding  elder  over  the 
states  of  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Missouri,  until  the  meeting  of  the 
next  General  Conference.  It  closed  its  deliberations  by  electing 
William  Davidson  as  district  book  steward,  and  passing  resolu- 
tions in  favor  of  temperance  and  Sunday-schools. 

The  Indiana  Conference  showed  vigor  and  growth  in  its  re- 
ported increase  of  two  hundred  and  sixty-two  members  in  Society 
for  the  Conference  year. 

The  representatives  of  the  Ohio  churches  assembled  in  Cincin- 
nati on  the  11th  of  September,  1841.  Three  preachers  were  ad- 
mitted on  trial:  W.  T.  Newsum,  W.  C.  Yancy  and  John  Gibbons. 
George  Coleman  was  elected  and  ordained  an  elder.  Daniel 
Winslow,  M.  M.  Clark  and  J.  Gibbons  were  ordained  deacons, 
and  Jeremiah  Thomas,  Claiborne  Yancy  and  J.  Gibbons  were 
put  upon  their  probation  as  traveling  preachers.  Austin  Jones 
and  Isaac  Delaney  were  numbered  with  the  dead,  but  no  obituary 
is  given  of  these  men  to  indicate  their  piety,  their  talents,  nor 
their  usefulness. 

Up  to  this  date,  and  at  the  Indiana  Conference  of  1841,  there 
have  been  found  no  instances  of  transfers  by  motion  in  an  An- 
nual Conference,  which  was  evidently  a  departure  from  Metho- 


138 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


distic  usage.  Here  we  have  the  first  record  of  the  kind  when 
Turner  Roberts  was  by  motion  transferred  to  the  Indiana  Con- 
ference. 

Among  the  resolutions  passed  was  one  creating  a  committee  of 
three  to  draft  an  address  upon  the  condition  of  our  people,  and 
also,  to  construct  a  constitution  to  govern  the  Societies  of  the 
Western  Conferences.  It  appears  that  the  preachers  had  com- 
plied with  the  resolutions  passed  by  the  last  Conference  relative 
to  the  causes  of  temperance  and  education,  and  that  these  im- 
portant causes  espoused  by  the  Church  were  progressing  among 
the  members  of  the  Church,  particularly  in  the  large  towns  and 
cities.  The  preachers  were  instructed  to  preach  upon  these  sub- 
jects at  least  twice  a  quarter,  and  by  every  means  in  their  power 
to  do  what  was  possible  towards  furthering  the  objects  in  view 
by  increasing  the  educational  interests,  and  suppressing,  as  far  as 
they  could,  intemperance,  and  especially  the  use  of  intoxicating 
drinks.  In  this  connection  the  Conference  resolved  that  all  can- 
didates for  the  itinerancy  should  be  examined,  and  be  required 
to  give  satisfactory  evidence  as  to  their  temperance  principles 
before  being  admitted  into  the  traveling  connection.  The  other 
abuses — that  of  prolonging  the  hours  of  night  service,  and  the 
singing  of  fugue  tunes  and  hymns,  were  corrected. 

The  second  annual  meeting  of  the  pastors  of  the  Canadian 
churches  was  held  in  St.  Catherine,  Upper  Canada,  October  2d, 
1841.  As  neither  Bishop  Brown  or  Bishop  Waters  were  present, 
Rev.  Edmund  Crosby  was  chosen  the  president,  with  S.  Brown  as 
his  assistant,  and  George  Weir  as  secretary.  This  year  George 
Wilkerson  was  admitted  on  trial,  and  Jacob  Dorsey,  Edward 
Gant,  Jeremiah  Taylor  and  Josiah  Henderson  were  received  into 
full  connection.  The  growth  of  this  Conference  was  also  prom- 
ising, as  there  was  an  increase  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-three. 

When  the  Conference  year  of  1842  opened,  the  Baltimore  Dis- 
trict met  on  the  23d  of  April  to  make  their  parochial  reports. 
Both  Bishops  were  present,  and  also  nine  elders,  nine  deacons, 
and  four  preachers.  We  find  Willis  Xazerv  admitted  into  full 
connection,  and  Henry  Waters  and  William  Gaines  into  the 
itinerant  service  on  probation,  while  Aaron  Wilson  was  reported 
as  dead. 

The  church  in  Hagerstown  was  attached  at  this  time  to  the 
Frenchtown  Circuit.  Among  resolutions  of  minor  importance 
the  following  helped  to  constitute  the  business  of  this  Conference : 


Closing  Years  of  the  Pbrst  Period 


139 


Resolved,  That  every  traveling  preacher  who  shall  neglect  for  one  year 
to  take  up  the  collections  of  two  cents  per  month  from  each  member  for 
the  support  of  the  ministry  shall  be  expelled  from  the  Connection,  unless 
he  sends  a  letter  or  note  to  the  steward  of  his  circuit  or  station  giving 
satisfactory  reason  for  such  neglect. 

Resolved,  That  the  preacher  from  each  circuit  or  station  shall,  in  future, 
produce  at  the  Annual  Conference  a  certificate,  properly  authenticated, 
containing  the  number  of  Sabbath  and  day  schools,  scholars  and  teachers 
within  his  charge,  and  also  the  amount  of  collections  made  during  the  year 
for  their  support. 

Twelve  Sabbath  and  two  day  schools  were  found  to  be  in  ex- 
istence in  the  bounds  of  this  Conference,  while  progress  in  good 
work  was  exhibited  in  the  petition  which  came  to  the  Confer- 
ence, praying  its  influence  and  aid  in  establishing  the  African 
and  Foreign  Home  Missionary  Society.  This  was  received,  and 
Conference  ordered  that  all  our  preachers  on  their  circuits  and 
stations  shall  render  their  aid  in  promoting  such  a  laudable 
society.* 

Nine  hundred  and  eighty  members  were  in  Society  at  Balti- 
more City  Station,  four  hundred  and  twenty-six  on  Fell's  Point 
Circuit,  four  hundred  and  fifty  on  Columbia  Circuit,  two  hundred 
and  twenty-five  on  Chambersburgh  Circuit,  seventy-nine  on 
Lewiston,  sixty-six  at  Easton,  sixty-seven  at  Frenchtown,  and 
three  hundred  and  ninety-two  elsewhere.  Their  two-cent  collec- 
tions amounted  to  $60.31,  while  the  collections  for  contingent 
expenses  amounted  to  $117.63,  of  which  Washington  City  raised 
$30.50. 

As  we  turn  to  the  Philadelphia  churches,  the  ministry  of  which 
commenced  their  deliberations  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  on  the 
21st  of  May,  this  year  (1842),  we  find  both  Bishops  present,  to- 
gether with  nineteen  elders,  thirteen  deacons,  and  nineteen 
preachers,  making  fifty-three  in  all.  Rev.  David  Ware  was  chosen 
secretary,  and  three  preachers  were  admitted  on  trial — William 
Webb,  C.  P.  Gibson  and  Daniel  A.  Payne.  Three  were  admitted 
into  full  connection — Adam  Driver,  Abram  Coursey  and  Stephen 
Holcomb.  Isaac  Parker  requested  to  be  located,  and  his  prayer 
was  granted. 

There  were  reported  among  the  departed  this  year  Robert  Hol- 
comb, John  Hight  and  Henry  Brown.  The  first  named  died  at 
the  ripe  old  age  of  ninety-seven  years,  and  had  been  a  member 

*This  society  was  the  result  of  the  Convention  held  in  Hartford,  Conn., 
the  August  previous. 


140 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


of  the  church  for  twenty-five  years.  He  is  spoken  of  as  a  "plain, 
simple-hearted  Christian,  a  pointed  and  solid  preacher,  a  good 
husband,  and  a  firm  friend.  He  commenced  his  public  labors 
about  1822."  John  Hightand  Henry  Brown  were  both  venerable 
preachers  of  the  Gospel  in  our  Connection  and  "wore  themselves 
out  in  the  service." 

The  Trenton  Circuit  was  divided  into  two  divisions,  the  east- 
ern portion  bearing  the  name  of  Princeton,  and  the  western  that 
of  the  Trenton  Circuit.  Strong  efforts  were  made  to  have  the 
funds  of  the  church  properly  looked  after,  and  this  Conference 
passed  some  very  stringent  resolutions  on  the  subject.  Among 
them,  any  itinerant  preacher  neglecting  to  take  up  collections  in 
his  charge  for  the  purpose  of  defraying  the  expense  of  the  An- 
nual Conference,  or  neglecting  to  collect  the  two-cent  money, 
would  be  liable  to  expulsion  from  the  ministry.  The  necessity 
of  these  resolutions  seems  to  indicate  alack  of  prudence  in  finan- 
cial matters  among  the  itinerant  preachers  of  that  time. 

Whether  it  had  been  customary  for  preachers,  after  making 
their  returns  to  Conference,  to  return  to  their  charges  without 
being  located,  does  not  seem  very  clear,  still,  from  this  resolution, 
it  would  seem  thai  such  was  the  case,  as  it  prohibited  any  one 
from  returning  and  holding  quarterly  meetings  without  the 
episcopal  authority  expressly  granted  under  the  penalty  of  ex- 
pulsion. 

The  local  preachers  and  exhorters  were  required  by  this  Con- 
ference to  establish  a  home  missionary  society,  which  was  to  be 
subject  to  the  Annual  Conference.  But  it  can  hardly  be  supposed 
that  the  Philadelphia  brethren  really  thought  that  the  local 
preachers  and  exhorters  felt  more  intensely  the  need  of  mission- 
ary enterprise,  and  would  evince  more  zeal  in  the  sacred  cause 
than  the  itinerants  themselves. 

it  was  at  this  time  that  we  have  news  again  from  the  Haytian 
Methodist  Church,  as  it  was  now  called,  as  it  had  separated  from 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  At  this  period  and  to 
this  Conference  news  comes  of  the  pecuniary  difficulties  which 
it  seems  to  have  been  suffering.  Henry  J.  Williamson,  on  behalf 
of  the  Church  in  Hayti,  requested,  through  a  petition,  assistance, 
and  this  the  Conference  promised  to  gram,  and  at  the  same  time 
gave  Mr.  Williamson  a  letter  of  introduction  or  recommendation 
to  the  general  public  and  another  to  the  Hartford  Conference. 
But  despite  the  resolutions  to  grant  aid,  the  Church  in  Hayti 


Closing  Years  of  the  First  Period, 


141 


received  nothing  at  that  time.  It  was  also  recognized  at  this  and 
other  Conferences  that  much  good  might  result  from  sending 
one  of  the  Bishops  on  a  visit  to  that  isla  nd,  but  the  efforts  put 
forth  went  no  farther  than  mere  resolutions,  for  some  cause  or 
other,  and  it  remained  for  later  workers  in  the  field  to  take  a 
view  of  the  land  that  we  might  have  possessed  in  full  had  we 
fully  seized  as  well  as  recognized  the  opportunities  for  our 
Church.    Every  such  failure  is  regarded  to-day  as  a  loss. 

The  Rahway  church  appears  again  to  have  been  in  an  embar- 
rassed condition,  and  a  collection  was  recommended  to  be  taken 
up  for  its  relief.  "  The  Church  Magazine,"  too,  which  had  been 
established  in  1841,  appears  at  this  early  period  of  its  existence 
in  "  deep  water."  It  had  been  published  as  a  monthly,  and  the 
first  number  had  appeared  in  September  of  that  year,  but  at  this 
Conference  a  resolution  is  passed  to  publish  it  quarterly.  Still, 
in  spite  of  its  embarrassed  condition  from  so  many  and  varied 
claims,  it  strove  nobly  and,  as  a  whole,  wisely  to  steer  clear  of 
future  difficulties. 

But  if  financial  matters  were  somewhat  clouded,  the  educa- 
tional interests  were  kept  clearly  before  the  .brethren.  The  reso- 
lutions leading  toward  progress  in  this  direction  are  worthy  of 
being  kept  in  mind  as  the  first  formulated  effort  toward  a  course 
of  regular  study.  It  was  first  resolved,  "  That  the  elders  and 
deacons  of  the  Connection  make  use  of  all  the  means  in  our 
power  from  henceforth  to  cultivate  our  minds  and  increase  our 
store  of  knowledge."  Then,  second,  "  That  we  recommend  to  all 
our  elders  and  deacons,  licensed  preachers  and  exhorters,  the  dil- 
igent and  indefatigable  study  of  the  following  branches  of  use- 
ful knowledge:  English  Grammar,  Geography,  Arithmetic, 
Rollin's  Ancient  History,  Modern  History,  Ecclesiastical  History, 
Natural  and  Revealed  Theology."  These  resolutions  were  intro- 
duced by  the  following  preliminary :  "  Whereas,  The  great  liter- 
ary advantages  which  the  rising  generation  enjoys  require  more 
than  ordinary  intelligence  in  the  ministry  that  may  be  called  to 
instruct  them;  and,  whereas,  our  excellent  discipline  cannot  be 
fully  executed,  nor  our  present  plans  of  improvement  fully  con- 
summated without  an  intelligent  ministry;  and  still  more, 
whereas,  the  word  of  God  requires  that  the  priest's  lips  should 
keep  knowledge,  and  they  (the  people)  should  seek  the  law  at 
his  mouth,  for  he  is  the  messenger  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts ;  there- 
fore, etc," 


142 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


These  resolutions,  presented  by  D.  A.  Payne  at  that  date,  were 
the  first  strong,  entering  wedges  to  rive  the  mass  of  general 
ignorance  and  force  the  ministry  of  our  Church  to  a  higher 
plane  of  intellectual  culture.  Still,  the  state  of  both  education 
and  temperance  in  the  bounds  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference 
for  the  year  1842  was  promising.  We  find  that  at  Princeton, 
N.  J.,  there  were,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  H.  C.  Turner,  one 
common  school,  containing  thirty-five  scholars  and  one  teacher ; 
one  Sunday-school,  with  sixty-seven  scholars  and  fifteen  teach- 
ers; and  one  temperance  society,  with  one  hundred  members. 
At  Trenton  we  find  one  common  school,  containing  thirty  schol- 
ars and  one  teacher;  one  Sunday-school,  containing  forty  schol- 
ars and  twelve  teachers,  and  one  temperance  society,  with  thirty 
members.  Railway,  N.  J.,  reported  thirty  scholars  and  six 
teachers  in  its  one  Sunday-school,  and  sixty  members  in  its  one 
temperance  society.  Gouldtown,  N.  J.,  under  Rev.  J.  Beulah, 
had  one  Sunday-school  and  thirty  scholars.  Bucks  County  Cir- 
cuit was  under  Rev.  I.  Parker,  and  had  thirty  scholars  in  its  one 
common  school,  and  twenty-seven  in  its  Sunday-school,  which 
was  under  the  care  of  one  teacher.  It  also  had  one  temperance 
society,  as  did  Attleboro  and  Buckingham  Mountain.  But  the 
largest  work  was  being  done  at  Philadelphia,  under  the  care  of 
Bishop  Morris  Brown.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  had  under  his  charge 
one  seminary  for  both  sexes,  containing  forty  scholars;  one  lit- 
erary society,  with  twenty  members;  one  Sunday-school,  having 
sixty  scholars  and  nine  teachers;  and  one  temperance  society, 
with  eight  hundred  members.  The  president  of  this  last  was 
Dr.  James  G.  Bias.  There  was  also  in  Philadelphia,  under  the 
care  of  Rev.  David  Ware,  one  common  school,  with  thirty  schol- 
ars, and  one  Sunday-school,  with  three  hundred  scholars  and 
twenty-four  teachers. 

Bishop  Morris  Brown  held  the  pastorate  of  Bethel  Church  this 
year,  as  he  had  done  many  years  before,  and  his  church  gave 
$120  of  the  total  amount  collected  for  contingent  expenses, 
which  was  $148.74. 

According  to  appointment  the  pastors  of  the  New  York 
churches  met  on  the  11th  of  June,  in  Bethel  Church,  on  Second 
street,  and  transacted  the  business  belonging  to  the  district,  Rt. 
Rev.  Morris  Brown  was  present  and  presided,  assisted  by  Rt. 
Rev.  Edward  Waters.  Rev.  George  Hogarth  was  chosed  secre- 
tary.   Henry  Johnson  and  J.  P.  Campbell  were  two  itinerants 


Closing  Years  of 'the  First  Period, 


143 


who  were  admitted  on  trial,  together  with  two  local  preachers, 
Goldsbury  Warner  and  John  Scott.  .lames  Sharp  was  received 
into  full  connection.  We  find  financial  embarrassments,  as  well 
as  in  the  other  districts,  for  the  church  at  Boston,  Mass.,  prayed 
Conference  not  to  send  them  a  pastor  for  the  present  year,  as 
their  embarrassed  condition  would  prevent  them  from  giving 
him  a  support;  but  they  asked  to  be  supplied  with  ministerial 
help  from  Providence,  R.  I.  The  church  at  Providence,  mean- 
while, petitioned  to  be  dismembered  from  the  New  England 
Mission  and  converted  into  a  station,  which  was  granted.  Since 
then  the  church  at  Providence  has  been  the  most  efficient  of  all 
the  New  England  congregations,  not  only  in  pastoral  support, 
but  also  in  sustaining  all  the  institutions  of  the  Church  and 
Connection.  A  body  of  Christians,  who  had  recently  seceded 
from  the  Zion  Wesley  Church,  prayed  Conference  to  receive  them 
into  the  fellowship  of  the  Connection,  and  be  put  under  the 
pastorate  of  the  Newr  York  City  Station.  This  was  granted  and 
provisions  were  also  made  for  constituting  all  the  licentiates  in 
said  church  members  of  the  Annual  Conference. 

The  petition  of  the  Haytian  churches,  which  had  been  laid 
before  the  Philadelphia  brethren,  was  also  brought  up  for  consid- 
eration and  resulted  in  securing  the  sympathy  and  promised  aid  of 
the  Conference.  It  was  made  the  duty  of  all  the  traveling  preach- 
ers to  produce  a  certificate  from  their  recording  stewards,  in 
proof  that  they  had  done  their  best  to  raise  the  moneys  created 
by  the  two-cent  system,  expulsion  from  the  itineracy  to  be  the 
penalty  of  neglect  to  produce  such  a  certificate. 

The  report  on  education  showed  that  there  were  taught  in  the 
basement  of  Bethel  Church,  Second  street,  New  York,  one  day 
school,  containing  one  hundred  and  twrenty-one  scholars  of  both 
sexes,  and  one  Sunday-school,  containing  thirty  males  and 
thirty-five  females,  managed  by  eleven  teachers. 

When  the  general  book  steward  made  his  annual  report,  in 
which  he  presented  his  views  of  a  plan  for  the  improvement  of 
the  concern,  it  was  approved  by  all  present.  It  was  decreed  that 
the  steward  should  procure  a  suitable  room  for  a  depository  of 
the  books  of  the  concern,  and  that  whenever  the  book  committee 
was  called  upon  to  attend  to  the  business  of  the  concern,  each 
member  of  it  should  be  allowed  the  value  of  a  half  day's  work. 
It  was  also  decided  that  each  subscriber  paying  one  dollar  an- 
nually should  be  entitled  to  one  copy  of  the  magazine,  and  that 


144 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


to  non-subscribers  the  magazine  should  be  sold  at  a  price  not 
exceeding  twelve  and  a  half  cents  per  copy ;  also,  that  the  book 
steward,  with  this  committee,  should  have  power  to  send  out 
two  agents,  one  northward,  the  other  southward,  to  solicit  sub- 
scribers for  said  magazine,  who  should  be  rewarded  for  their 
services  by  a  ten  per  cent,  premium,  the  duty  of  such  agents  to 
be  the  entering  the  names  of  subscribers  with  the  amount  of  all 
their  receipts  on  their  subscription  books,  and  the  making  of 
regular  returns  to  the  book  concern.  There  were  those  who  felt 
that  the  proper  progress  in  the  Connection  could  best  be  brought 
about  by  the  publication  of  the  magazine  monthly  instead  of 
quarterly,  as  the  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore  Conferences  had 
ordered,  so  Rev.  Daniel  A.  Payne  sent  a  communication  to  this 
Conference  (under  whose  control  the  book  concern  had  been 
placed  by  the  General  Conference),  praying  that  the  resolutions 
of  the  afore-mentioned  Conferences  be  set  aside,  and  the  maga- 
zine be  published  monthly.  After  due  consideration  it  Avas 
resolved,  "  That  so  much  of  the  action  taken  by  the  Baltimore 
and  Philadelphia  Conferences  on  the  part  of  the  publication  of 
our  magazine  be  revoked,  and  that  it  shall  he  published  monthly 
instead  of  quarterly." 

Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  also  introduced  resolutions  concerning  min- 
isterial education  similar  to  those  introduced  by  him  in  the  Phil- 
adelphia Conference. 

The  general  book  steward  and  his  colleagues  were  also  instructed 
"to  publish  the  rise  and  progress  of  our  Church,  with  a  revision 
of  the  life  and  death  of  the  late  Bishop  Allen,  the  founder  of  our 
Connection;  also  the  journal,  or  the  life  and  death  of  the  late 
Joseph  M.  Corr,  the  former  general  book  steward." 

The  Canadian  churches  gathered  together  on  the  second  of 
July,  1842,  in  the  city  of  Hamilton,  C.  W.,  Bishop  Brown  pre- 
sided, assisted  by  Samuel  Brown.  Three  elders,  three  deacons 
and  five  preachers  were  present.  Henry  Ballard,  a  layman,  acted 
as  Conference  steward.  Four  were  admitted  on  probation.  These 
were  Peter  Smith,  Zachariah  Estress,  Austin  Steward  and  James 
Walke.  At  this  meeting  Josiah  Henson  was  ordained  a  deacon, 
and  Austin  Steward,  the  exhorter,  in  whose  behalf  the  brethren 
at  Rochester  had  memorialized  Conference,  was  received  into  the 
itinerant  service  of  the  Church,  and  then  immediately  trans- 
ferred back  to  the  New  York  Conference.  Jeremiah  Taylor,  J acob 
Dorsey  and  Edward  Gant  were  received  into  full  connection. 


Closing  Years  of  the  First  Period. 


145 


Rev.  James  Harper  and  Rev.  Alexander  Hemsley  were  ordained 
elders.  This  was  the  second  year  of  the  existence  of  the  Canada, 
Conference,  and  the  first  time  that  we  have  a  report  of  their 
quarterage.  We  will  exhibit  their  places  of  appointment  and  sal- 
aries received,  so  that  we  may  judge  somewhat  of  their  financial 
strength  and  progress,  and  also,  that  we  may  have  data  with 
which  to  compare  the  subsequent  financial  condition  of  the 
Church  in  these  regions.  Alexander  Hemsley  received  $12.12  at 
Toronto,  Jeremiah  Taylor  received  $22.23  on  London  Circuit, 
James  Harper  received  $20  on  Branford  Circuit,  Josiah  Henson 
received  $19.50  on  Colchester  Circuit,  and  William  Edwards  and 
Jacob  Dorsey  received  $24  on  St.  Catharine's  Circuit,  making  a 
total  of  $97.84.  The  contingent  expenses  reached  the  sum  of 
$57.70. 

The  territory  of  the  Canada  Conference  was  enlarged  this  year 
by  the  addition  of  the  city  of  Detroit,  in  the  state  of  Michigan, 
and  Queensbush,  in  the  township  of  Peel,  Canada  West. 

On  the  25th  of  August,  1842,  the  ministers  of  the  Indiana 
regions  met  in  the  village  of  Vincennes,  and  spent  eight  days 
deliberating  on  the  condition  and  prospects  of  the  work  of  God 
committed  to  their  care.  There  were  present  five  elders,  five 
deacons,  and  ten  licentiates.  In  the  absence  of  Bishop  Waters, 
Elder  Quinn  was  chosen  to  assist  Bishop  Brown,  and  iEneas 
Mcintosh  was  made  secretary.  Six  persons  were  put  upon  their 
probation  as  itinerants — James  Curtis,  Israel  Cole,  Joshua  B. 
Dunlap,  Bird  Parker,  vEneas  Mcintosh  and  Willis  R.  Revels. 
Turner  Roberts  was  transferred  from  the  Ohio  Conference  to  this. 
Two  were  ordained  elders,  George  W.  Johnson  and  William 
Douglas,  and  two  were  located,  Major  J.  Wilkerson  and  Robert 
Jones.  Rev.  David  Smith  was  appointed  district  book  steward 
for  the  state  of  Indiana,  and  Rev.  W.  P.  Quinn  for  Illinois  and 
Missouri. 

The  Ohio  churches  held  their  annual  deliberations  this  year, 
beginning  on  the  17th  of  September.  Nine  elders,  three  deacons 
and  two  licentiates  constituted  the  number  present.  Henry 
Adcusson  was  chosen  assistant  to  Bishop  Brown,  as  Bishop  Waters 
did  not  attend.  William  Newsum  and  Thomas  Woodson,  with 
Watkins  Lee,  were  received  on  trial;  Augustus  R.  Green,  David 
Canyon  and  M.  M.  Clark,  into  full  connection ;  and  the  last  named, 
with  Augustus  Green,  were  ordained  elders ;  while  Matthew  T, 
10 


146 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church . 


Xewsum.  Thomas  Woodson  and  Simon  Ratcliff  were  ordained 
deacons.  Claiborne  Yancy  retired  from  the  itineracy,  and 
Benjamin  Roberts  had  finished  his  mortal  career,  leaving  "a 
bright  testimony  behind  him."  We  find  at  this  stage  of  the  ex- 
istence of  our  Church  a  number  of  men  entering  the  work  who 
were  above  mediocrity,  to  say  the  least.  JSnens  Mcintosh  and 
Willis  Revels  were  head  and  shoulders  above  the  others  in  the 
Indiana  District  in  intellectual  endowments  and  literary  attain- 
ments, and  Wood-on.  Clark  and  Green  were  much  above  the 
average. 

There  was  proper  and  just  recognition  at  this  Conference  <»f 
what  was  denominated  the  "  Western  Missions "  and  missions 
generally,  and  David  Winslow  was  permitted  to  go  home  and 
settle  his  private  affairs,  with  the  privilege  of  engaging  after- 
wards in  mission  work  lying  in  the  bounds  of  the  Ohio  District. 
Elder  William  P.  Quinn's  labors  in  prosecuting  the  western 
work  were  commended,  and  he  was  designated  as  entitled  to 
"that  honor  and  esteem  which  is  due  and  is  paid  to  all  men 
of  great  minds  and  enterprising  habit-."  Here  we  find  the  work 
of  the  "Western  Missions"  summed  up:  It  was  begun  in  L84Q 
and  now  (in  1842 J  it  is  reported  as  including  eight  circuits  and 
stations,  embracing  a  membership  of  about  eight  or  nine  hun- 
dred, and  comprising  a  colored  community  of  about  twelve  to 
f <  i  o  rt  e  e  n  t  h  o  u  sa  n  d . 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


LITERATURE  AND  VARIOUS  SUBJECTS. 

Preparations  for  the  Publication  of  the  Magazine— Contents  of  the  First 
Number  The  Magazine's  Existence  of  Eight  Years— Reasons  for  Fail- 
ure— Statistical  Presentation  -  First  Words  on  Ministerial  Education — 
Struggle  in  184-5  Between  Ignorance  and  Knowledge— Bishop  Brown  fav- 
oring an  Educated  Ministry — Alexander  Wayman  and  others  Admitted  on 
Probation— D.  A.  Payne  and  Others  Admitted  into  Full  Connection- 
Willis  Nazrey  Ordained  Elder— New  York  Conference— J.  P.  Campbell, 
Charles  Burch  and  Thomas  W.  Jackson  Admitted. 

WE  have  already  furnished  the  reader  with  the  circumstances 
under  which  the  magazine  of  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  sprang  into  existence.  After  Conference 
had  decided  to  publish  a  magazine,  the  general  book  steward, 
Rev.  George  Hogarth,  set  about  making  the  necessary  prepara- 
tions. The  first  copy,  as  has  already  been  said,  was  issued  in 
September,  1841.  That  there  was  inherent  strength  and  enter- 
prise, as  well  as  liberal  mindedness,  existing  in  the  bosom  of  this 
poor  and  struggling  people  is  shown,  not  only  by  the  step  taken, 
but  by  the  material  which  entered  into  the  literary  make-up  of 
the  first  number  of  this  magazine  and  the  prospectus  which 
heralded  its  advent.    This  prospectus  is  given  here  in  full: 

To  the  Friends  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church : 

Brethren: — The  clergy  of  our  Church,  in  their  Conferences,  have  long 
contemplated  on  the  importance  and  necessity  of  a  magazine,  either 
monthly  or  quarterly,  published  under  the  immediate  supervision  of  our 
Church  as  a  circulating  medium  of  intelligence  throughout  the  wide  ex- 
tensive bounds  of  our  Connection.  Such  a  work  we  consider,  if  properly 
conducted,  will  be  of  vast  importance  toward  advancing  the  interests  of 
our  general  Church,  and  at  the  same  time  convey  such  information  period- 
ically through  its  pages,  of  the  general  progress  of  our  Church,  as  every 
friend  and  well-wisher  of  our  Connection  materially  desires. 

In  embarking  upon  this  laudable  enterprise  it  becomes  our  duty  in  the 
outset  to  inform  our  friends  that  such  a  work  cannot  be  conducted  with 
dignity  and  honor  to  our  people  unless  it  meets  with  an  ample  supply  of 
pecuniary  and  intellectual  means.  A  fear  of  failure  in  obtaining  these  im- 
portant contingencies  had  in  a  great  measure  prevented  our  brethren  in 
their  deliberations  from  coming  to  any  conclusions  on  this  important 
subject. 

(147) 


148 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


But,  judging  from  the  present  aspect  of  things  that  the  times  have 
greatly  changed  in  our  favor  as  a  people,  light  has  burst  forth  upon  us,  in- 
telligence in  a  great  measure  has  taken  the  place  of  ignorance,  especially 
among  the  younger  portions  of  our  people,  opening  the  avenues  to  proper 
Christian  feeling  and  benevolence,  our  brethren,  from  those  important 
considerations,  came  to  the  conclusion  at  our  last  New  York  Annual  Con- 
ference, held  in  June,  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  to  order  such  a  work,  and 
lay  it  before  the  public  for  their  patronage. 

In  soliciting  the  aid  of  our  friends  we  would  wish  it  fully  understood 
that  it  is  far  from  our  intention  to  close  our  pages  to  the  respectful  commu- 
nications of  any  who  may  at  any  time  be  so  kind  as  to  contribute  to  the 
advancement  of  our  enterprise,  as  we  assure  our  friends  that  we  shall  stand 
greatly  in  need  of  talented  contributors  to  our  pages. 

Among  the  prominent  objects  of  our  enterprise  which  call  for  imme- 
diate and  particular  attention,  is  primitive  Christianity  as  was  understood 
to  exist  in  the  Methodist  Church  in  Mr.  "Wesley's  day  ;  a  vindication  of  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  our  Church  in  all  its  bearings  in  this  country  as 
African  Methodists,  its  episcopacy  and  doctrines,  holding  up  to  the  observ- 
ance of  our  Christian  brethren,  regardless  of  color,  the  importance  of  union 
among  us,  not  only  as  Methodists,  but  as  worshippers  before  the  same 
Lamb  in  whose  blood  we  are  washed ;  the  extension  of  the  Redeemer's 
kingdom  among  our  brethren  of  color  in  this  country,  who  are  still  perish- 
ing for  the  want  of  an  opportunity  of  hearing  his  sacred  word  to  their 
\  advantage;  the  importance  of  turning  the  attention  of  our  brethren  to 
the  land  of  our  fathers — the  millions  of  souls  who  are  enshrouded  in  mid- 
night darkness  under  heathenish  superstition  and  idolatry — that  the  prayers 
of  our  brethren  may  ascend  to  the  ear  of  the  Lord,  that  he  may  in  mercy 
raise  up  some  of  our  young  men  and  prepare  them  to  carry  to  Africa's  shore 
the  glad  tidings  of  salvation,  that  the  sunbeams  of  the  morning  may  burst 
forth  with  its  radiant  light  upon  these  benighted  regions  and  dispel  the 
shades  of  ignorance,  superstition,  idolatry  and  death  that  now  lays  them 
prostrate  in  the  dust ;  the  necessity  of  contributing  to  the  education  of  our 
pious  young  men  who  may  be  called  of  God  to  the  work  of  the  ministry, 
that  they  may  be  able  to  study  unembarrassed  to  show  themselves  ap- 
proved of  God,  workmen  that  need  not  be  ashamed,  rightly  divining  the 
word  of  truth. 

Sabbath  school  and  every  other  religious  instruction  shall  meet  with  our 
most  cordial  support,  that  our  members,  under  God,  may  become  remark- 
able for  science  and  Christian  piety  and  intelligence  in  this  highly  favored 
land  of  Christendom.  And  last,  but  not  least,  moral  reform  in  all  its 
branches  shall  command  our  special  attention,  as  we  are  fully  satisfied  that 
its  principles  open  to  the  view  the  avenues  to  true  Christian  piety  and 
holiness. 

This  work  will  be  issued  from  the  press  monthly,  and  our  terms  will  be 
$1  per  annum,  payable  in  advance  ;  SI. 25  at  the  end  of  three  months,  and 
SI. 50  at  the  end  of  the  year. 

The  ministers  in.  charge  of  our  circuits  and  stations  throughout  the 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


149 


Connection,  or  whomsoever  they  or  the  general  book  steward  may  appoint, 
will  become  our  special  agents  to  solicit  subscriptions,  to  distribute  the 
work,  and  collect  the  funds  due  from  the  subscribers  and  forward  to  us,  for 
which  they  will  be  allowed  the  usual  commission. 

The  proceeds  of  the  work,  after  all  expenses  are  paid,  shall  be  strictly 
applied  to  aid  our  general  Church  according  to  the  provisions  of  our  discip- 
line. We  sincerely  hope  that  our  agents  will  invariably,  when  they  have 
accumulated  five  or  ten  dollars,  w  ithout  delay  forward  the  amount  through 
the  mail,  that  the  wheels  of  our  vehicle  may  at  no  time  be  clogged  for  the 
want  of  any  immediate  pecuniary  support. 

We  are  your  affectionate  brethren  in  the  Lord, 

George  Hogarth,  General  Book  Steward. 

Samuel  Edwards, 
Joshua  Jenkins, 
Benjamin  Croger, 
Willis  Jones, 

Such  was  the  prospectus  issued  by  the  editor.  It  is  a  straight- 
forward document  that  many  other  editors  would  do  well  to  copy. 

The  first  number  was  chiefly  occupied  by  reports  and  minutes 
of  the  several  Annual  Conferences  which  had  been  held  through- 
out the  past  year.  From  the  October  number  we  cull  the  follow- 
ing short  editorial  upon  the  work  of  Bishop  Brown : 

This  venerable  servant  of  God,  and  presiding  officer  of  our  Church,  is 
this  day,  August  19th  (while  we  are  preparing  our  work  for  the  press), 
engaged  in  opening  his  Indiana  Conference.  We  trust  that  it  may  be  at- 
tended with  glorious  results. 

This  man  of  God,  we  can  safely  say,  feels  his  mission  deeply  at  heart. 
The  high,  responsible  station  in  which,  under  God,  he  has  been  placed  for 
the  last  twelve  or  fourteen  years,  he  has  filled  with  dignity  and  honor  to 
himself  and  to  our  general  Church,  which  requires  the  gratitude  of  all  as 
brethren  for  his  devoted  zeal  in  the  cause  of  God  and  of  our  Church,  for 
which  cause  he  has  not  ceased  to  labor  day  and  night,  traveling  through 
hot  and  cold,  east,  west,  north  and  south. 

O,  that  we  may  always  have  such  a  Bishop  that  feels  the  interests  of  the 
Church  so  deeply  at  heart!  We  trust  that  he  will  fail  not  to  drop  us  a  few 
lines  now  and  then  for  publication  as  he  is  traveling  on  to  his  several  Con- 
ferences. 

There  is  also  a  long  letter  from  John  M.  Brown,  of  Oberlin 
College,  dealing  chiefly  with  the  question  of  Education  among 
the  Colored  People,  and  suggesting  several  possible  means  where- 
by the  increase  of  education  may  be  effected.  Among  other 
things  he  says: 

It  is  a  self  evident  fact. that  the  people  of  color  of  this  country  have 
been  denied  the  privilege  of  a  liberal  education;  therefore,  it  reasonably 


It 


150 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


follows  that  they  stand  much  in  need  of  one.  In  order  to  get  an  educa- 
tion, they  must  apply  themselves  to  study.  In  these  days  of  light  and 
knowledge,  every  man,  woman  and  child  can  become  educated  if  he  will. 

The  above  declarations  being  evident,  it  follows,  of  course,  that  it  is 
the  duty  of  all  persons  to  improve  their  minds,  and  become  educated.  .  .  . 
The  various  resolutions  on  the  subject  of  education,  passed  at  preceding 
Annual  Conferences,  should  be  put  in  action,  for  until  there  is  action  on 
the  subject  it  will  be  impossible  to  accomplish  anything. 

Literary  institutions  should  be  selected  by  our  Conferences,  to  which 
those  of  our  young  men  whom  we  shall  hereafter  choose  as  candidates  for 
the  ministry  may  be  sent  that  they  may  become  prepared  for  the  work. 

In  order  to  secure  this,  let  there  be  committees  appointed  from  each 
Conference  to  seek  out  such  institutions  as  will  receive  them  on  the  most 
favorable  terms,  and  those  committees  make  the  most  favorable  report  to 
some  body,  that  the  Conference  may  be  authorized  to  act  for  them  in  the 
interval  of  the  sessions.  I  would  recommend  the  Oneida  Institute,  at 
Whiteboro,  N.  Y.,  for  the  Philadelphia,  New  York  and  Baltimore  Districts; 
the  Oberlin  Collegiate  Institute  for  the-Ohio  and  Indiana  Districts;  and  the 
Toronto  University  for  the  Canada  Districts.  Neither  of  these  schools  are 
Methodist  institutions.  I  would  advise  that  the  young  men  first  sent  out 
should  only  remain  in  those  institutions.  The  course  of  studies  for  the 
junior  preachers  the  first  four  years  should  be  marked  out  to  them  in  a 
manner  similar  to  that  of  our  white  brethren. 

I  want  to  see  our  young  men  come  up  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and 
cultivated  minds.  They  must  build  up  the  foundation  thus  laid  by  our 
venerable  fathers.  The  names  of  those  noble-hearted  pioneers  will  long 
be  borne  in  mind.  Generations  yet  unborn  will  call  them  blessed.  Three 
years,  I  think,  with  proper  attention  on  the  part  of  the  student,  will 
accomplish  this.  Will  our  brethren  act  upon  this  important  point  without 
delay?  Try,  dear  brother,  and  urge  it  upon  them;  for  I  consider  it  the 
mainspring  of  all  our  future  actions,  and  the  life  of  our  Church. 

There  was  still  another  editorial  which  is  of  interest  to  us  to- 
day — one  upon  the  subject  of  "  African  Missions:" 

Just  at  this  time,  August  the  19th,  while  we  are  busily  engaged  in  pre- 
paring our  work  for  the  press,  our  colored  Christian  brethren  of  all  de- 
nominations are  convened  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  deliberating  on  the  ways  and 
means  for  us  to  carry  the  gospel  to  poor,  benighted,  downtrodden  Africa, 
the  land  of  our  forefathers. 

This  is  a  cause  of  deep  interest  to  us  as  a  people,  and  naturally  calls  the 
attention  of  every  person  who  has  one  drop  of  African  blood  running  in 
his  veins.  Every  Christian  should  be  deeply  interested  in  this  glorious 
work. 

We  sincerely  hope  that  this  convention  will  result  in  blessings  on  our 
fatherland.  Though  at  present  it  appears  to  be  a  day  of  smafl  things  in 
this  glorious  cause,  yet  we  feel  that  God  will  not  despise  it,  but  bestow 
honor  on  those  who  are  engaged  in  this  praiseworthy  work.    What  can 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


ir>l 


appear  more  acceptable  in  the  sight  of  God  than  to  see  the  descendants  of 
Africa  as  missionaries  from  our  country,  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and 
cultivated  minds,  scattering  themselves  throughout  those  benighted 
regions,  and  proclaiming  the  gospel  of  light  and  peace  to  t  hose  millions 
Of  poor  sonls  identified  with  ourselves  in  color,  who  in  this  gospel  day  are 
still  sitting  in  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  ? 

We  feel  much  embarrassed  in  mind  that  it  is  beyond  our  ability  to  be 
present  at  the  convention,  though  we  have  had  an  invitation  from  the 
committee  to  attend,  but  they  have  our  unceasing  prayers  to  God  for  their 
success. 

With  this  first  effort  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  to  attain  n.  literary  standing-  in  the  groat  family  of  Chris- 
tian denominations,  and  to  instruct  her  members  in  Christian 
morals,  Christian  obligations  and  Christian  enterprises,  as  well  as 
to  create  a  love  for  science  and  philosophy  through  the  medium 
of  the  press,  let  us  now  ask  what  was  the  measure  of  he]1  sue* ess 
at  the  end  of  the  first  year?  Only  three  numbers  were  issued  in 
this  period — one  of  eleven  months. 

The  editorial  of  the  May  number  will  be  the  best  and  most 
authoritative  answer  to  this  important  question.  It  is  well  to 
note  here,  for  the  better  understanding  of  what  follows,  that  the 
Zion's  Connection  had  at  that  time  quite  an  imposing  sheet, 
which  was  edited  by  Rev.  Jehiel  S.  Beman.  It  was  called  "The 
Zion's  Wesleyan." 

To  our  Patrons  and  the  Friends  of  our  Cause  Generally  : 

As  much  time  has  elapsed  since  our  last  number  was  issued  from  the 
press,  the  minds  of  many,  no  doubt,  are  on  a  stretch  to  ascertain  the 
causes  why  we  should,  at  our  very  commencement,  suspend  our  operations 
for  such  a  length  of  time. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  upon  the  cover  of  our  last  number  we 
there  issued  a  circular  informing  the  public  that  as  soon  as  nine  hundred 
subscribers,  at  one  dollar  each  per  annum,  could  be  obtained  (which 
number  is  needed  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  work),  that  our  next  num- 
ber should  be  issued  forthwith,  monthly.  We  have  waited  upon  the 
friends  of  our  cause  with  longing  eyes  for  their  patronage  of  this  laudable 
enterprise  until  now,  but  we  are  sorry  to  say,  to  our  astonishment,  we  find 
but  few  (out  of  the  large  numbers  of  our  members  dispersed  throughout 
the  country)  have  lent  their  aid  and  influence  in  support  of  this  important 
work — a  work  which  has  long  been  wanted  among  us ;  which,  if  well  con- 
ducted, is  calculated,  under  God,  to  raise  the  character  of  our  Church  and 
ministry  in  the  estimation  of  the  public,  and  place  us  on  a  footing  inferior 
to  no  other  Christian  denomination.  The  eyes  of  our  people,  however, 
have  been  closed  thus  far  to  this  important  subject,  much  to  the  hurt  of 
our  general  cause ;  for,  while  the  mantle  of  obscurity  has  been  thrown 


152 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


over  the  efforts,  progress  and  prosperity  of  our  general  Church  for  the  last 
twenty-five  years,  other  denominations  (many  of  whom  are  inferior  to  ours 
in  number  of  members)  have  their  periodicals,  through  which  the  public 
are  informed  of  their  existence,  and  are  enabled  to  place  an  estimate  upon 
their  character  and  standing  among  the  various  denominations  of  Chris- 
tians in  our  country. 

In  our  last  New  York  Annual  Conference  many  of  our  brethren  con- 
cluded that  in  this  day  of  light  and  literature,  and  according  to  the  prog- 
ress of  our  Church,  it  was  high  time  we  should  awaken  out  of  our  moral 
and  intellectual  stupor,  and  shake  off  this  mantle  of  obscurity  now  pend- 
ing over  our  denomination,  and  place  before  the  public,  through  a  period- 
ical of  our  own,  our  doctrines  and  tenets,  our  efforts,  progress  and  deter- 
mination, under  God,  to  maintain  a  laudable  standing  among  the  various 
denominations  of  Christians  in  our  land.  This  feeling  has  not  become 
dominant  in  the  hearts  of  most  of  those  brethren  thus  associated,  but,  to 
the  contrary,  they  have  gone  forward  with  a  holy  zeal,  determined  to  carry 
out  the  measures  thus  adopted.  Some  have  met  with  favorable  results 
thus  far  in  soliciting  subscribers,  whilst  others  have  not  as  yet  been  quite 
so  fortunate.  We  trust,  however,  that  our  brethren  will  renew  their 
efforts,  and  never  rest  satisfied  until  our  magazine  shall  become  established 
permanently. 

It  is  evident  from  this  editorial  that,  while  a  few  of  the  minis- 
try were  manfully  struggling  to  sustain  this  literary  enterprise, 
the  great  mass,  both  of  the  ministry  and  the  people,  were  per- 
fectly unconcerned  about  its  success. 

This  magazine,  after  a  varying  and  struggling  existence,  stopped 
in  the  eighth  year  of  its  publication.  During  that  time  it  was 
the  only  medium  through  which  the  Church  could  exhibit  its 
progress  in  learning  and  the  growth  of  talent  among  its  members. 

Thus  ended  the  first  venture  of  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  in  the  field  of  journalistic  literature,  and  with  the 
single  exception  of  a  small  memoir  of  a  child  published,  it  had 
been  the  only  venture  in  a  literary  line  of  the  Church  from  its 
beginning.  Various  attempts  had  been  made  to  induce  the  book 
concern  to  publish  something.  The  manuscripts  of  one  or  two 
books  had  been  presented  by  the  members,  and  Conference  had 
voted  funds;  but,  until  the  appearance  of  the  magazine  in  1841, 
nothing  had  been  accomplished. 

The  chief  reasons  which  might  be  assigned  for  the  failure  of  the 
magazine  are  the  almost  total  want  of  learning  among  the  laity 
of  the  Church,  the  limited  education  of  the  ministers,  and  the 
small  number  who  were  sufficiently  educated  or  had  the  time 
either  to  contribute  to  its  support  by  writing  or  to  appreciate  the 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


L53 


efforts  put  forth  for  its  sustenance.  Low  as  the  price  was,  it  was 
too  high  for  the  majority  of  both  ministers  and  laity  who  could 
read,  owing  to  the  extreme  poverty  of  the  great  mass  of  those  to 
whom  the  magazine  naturally  addressed  itself.  While  it  existed 
the  magazine  showed  that  it  was  judiciously  managed,  and  its 
death  showed  no  disgrace  upon  the  Church,  as  many  magazines 
before  and  since,  begun  upon  stronger  foundations  and  with 
brighter  prospects  of  success,  have  been  forced  to  succumb  in  a 
much  shorter  period  of  time. 

As  a  means  of  promoting  and  stimulating  the  literary  spirit  as 
distinct  from  the  work  of  the  magazine,  in  the  spring  of  1842  a 
literary  society  was  formed  bearing  the  name  of  the  Union 
Theological  Association  of  Philadelphia,  whose  special  object 
was  to  cultivate  the  spirit  of  biblical  research  and  that  of  the 
collateral  sciences.  It  included  Bishop  Brown  and  all  the  local 
ministry  of  the  sister  churches.  Its  meetings  were  held  in  the 
lecture-room  of  Bethel.  It  was  very  violently  opposed  by  some; 
but,  in  spite  of  opposition,  it  continued  in  existence  for  about 
twelve  months,  when  some  of  its  leading  members  were  removed, 
two  entering  the  itinerant  service,  and  one  died.  The*  Rev. 
Joseph  Corr  was  elected  president.  He  took  an  active  part  in 
its  work  up  to  the  time  of  his  last  illness.  After  his  death  the 
Association  became  extinct.  It  died  just  as  certain  plants  will 
die,  because  there  is  no  gardener  to  take  care  of  it — just  as  an 
army  will  become  disorganized  because  there  is  no  general  to 
command  it — just  as  a  house  will  go  to  ruins  because  there  is  no 
one  to  repair  it.  During  the  twelve  months  of  its  existence 
many  interesting  debates  on  various  theological  questions  were 
had,  and  several  valuable  essays  were  written. 

The  year  1842  was  remarkable  for  the  erection  of  new 
churches  in  the  Connection.  We  gather  from  letters  written  to 
the  editor  of  the  magazine  that  not  less  than  five  were  conse- 
crated to  the  worship  of  the  Most  High.  The  first  was  that 
beautiful  edifice  in  Philadelphia,  Bethel,  at  a  cost  of  about 
$14,000.  Then  one  was  built  in  Lewiston,  and  one  in  Hollidays- 
burgh,  Pa. ;  one  in  Salem,  N.  J. ;  and  one  in  Elmira,  N.  Y. 

From  letters  written  by  a  number  of  brethren  it  seems  that 
notwithstanding  there  was  no  extraordinary  outpouring  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  upon  the  Connection,  yet  the  Lord  did  graciously 
smile  upon  various  portions  of  the  Church,  and  added  many  to 
the  number  of  the  redeemed. 


154 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


From  the  report  of  the  general  book  steward  we  learn  that 
the  publications  issued  by  the  concern  cost  it  the  sum  of 
$224.24,  and  the  profits  amounted  to  $333.57.  The  amount  re- 
ceived into  the  preachers'  fund  from  the  New  York  District  was 
$36.02;  from  the  Philadelphia  District  $28.75;  and  from  the  Bal- 
timore District  $53.63;  making  a  total  of  $118.40.  The  numer- 
ical strength  of  the  clergy  was  as  a  total  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
three,  consisting  of  two  Bishops,  forty-six  elders,  fifty-four  dea- 
cons, sixty-one  preachers,  and  among  these  were  sixty-five  trav- 
eling preachers  and  ninety-eight  local  preachers.  ( >f  these,  twenty- 
nine  belonged  to  the  Baltimore  Conference ;  thirty-nine  to  the 
Philadelphia  Conference  ;  thirty-two  to  the  New  York  Conference : 
twenty-seven  to  the  Ohio  Conference;  twenty-three  to  the  Indiana 
Conference;  and  fourteen  to  the  Canada  Conference. 

There  were  two  thousand  nine  hundred  and  ninety-three  mem- 
bers in  the  Baltimore  District,  four  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  twenty-eight  in  the  Philadelphia  District,  one  thousand  four 
hundred  and  fifty-four  in  the  New  York  District,  four  hundred 
and  forty-four  in  the  Canada  District,  one  thousand  one  hundred 
and  jfcinety-four  in  the  Indiana  District,  and  two  thousand  six 
hundred  and  fifteen  in  the  Ohio  District — a  total  membership  of 
thirteen  thousand  live  hundred  and  twenty-eight. 

With  this  statistical  presentation  the  year  1842  closes,  and  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  is  introduced  into  a  new 
era  in  its  history. 

It  will  he  remembered  that  ever  since  the  passage  of  certain 
resolutions  at  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  1833,  calling  the  at- 
tention of  the  ministry  and  people  to  the  common  and  the  Sun- 
day-school education  of  the  children,  the  same  idea  has  been 
echoed  and  re-echoed  by  almost  every  Annual  Conference,  but 
beyond  the  passage  of  resolutions  touching  the  subject,  the  Church 
had  not  done  anything.  It  will  also  be  recollected  that  it  was 
not  till  four  years  afterwards  that  the  first  word  was  uttered  on 
the  subject  of  ministerial  education;  that  this  occurred  at 
the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  1837,  through  the 
agency  of  William  Yates.  Esq.,  a  lawyer  from  the  city  of  Troy, 
N.  Y.,  who  acted  in  the  premises  as  the  accredited  agent  of  the 
Anti-Slavery  Society;  and  that  this  movement  of  Mr.  Yates  was 
sustained  by  the  Rev.  Joshua  Leavitt,  then  the  able  and  enter- 
prising editor  of  the  New  York  Evangelist,  himself  a  Congrega- 
tional clergyman,  and  one  of  the  early  advocates  of  impartial 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


155 


freedom.  The  first  article  (excepting  a  single  remark  by 
the  editor  of  the  magazine  in  the  same  year,  and  a  short  edi- 
torial in  the  magazine  for  December,  1842,  penned  by  a  minister- 
in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church)  was  written  by  Brother  John  M.  Brown, 
April  14th,  in  the  year  1841,  lie  being  then  a  licentiate  and  a 
student  at  Oberlin  College,  as  has  been  previously  mentioned. 
But  the  year  1843  witnessed  the  commencement  of  that  struggle 
between  darkness  and  light,  between  ignorance  and  knowledge, 
between  baptized  superstition  and  Christianity,  that  shall  never 
end  till  victory  shall  sit  perching  upon  the  banners  of  the  one  or 
the  other;  and  we  are  certain  that  God  will  defend  the  right,  and 
crown  it  with  the  most  glorious  success. 

April  '2'ld,  1843,  saw  the  ministry  of  the  Baltimore  District 
gathering.  The  two  Bishops  were  present,  with  ten  elders,  four- 
deacons  and  thirteen  preachers.  Rev.  Levin  Lee  was  secretary. 
Before  commencing  its  business  the  Conference  voted  that  all 
the  official  members  of  the  church  in  Baltimore  and  elsewhere 
should  have  a  seat  but  no  voice.  Benjamin  Lynch  and  Perry 
Stanton  were  admitted  on  trial  as  local  preachers;  Benjamin 
Boyer,  John  L.  Armstrong,  Thomas  Hall.  Darius  Stokes,  William 
(i.  Brown  and  Savage  Hammonds  were  admitted  into  full  con- 
nection, only  one  being  an  itinerant — Brother  Armstrong. 

An  itinerant  licentiate  by  the  name  of  Adam  S.  Driver  made 
application  for  the  orders  of  a  deacon,  at  the  same  time  that  the 
Quarterly  Conference  of  Bethel,  in  Baltimore,  petitioned  the 
Annual  Conference  to  ordain  Brothers  Savage  L.  Hammonds  and 
Thomas  Hall,  two  local  licentiates,  to  the  same  rank  in  the  min- 
istry. These  three  brethren  w^ere  put  into  the  hands  of  a  com- 
mittee, consisting  of  D.  A.  Payne,  John  Boggs  and  Thomas  W. 
Henry,  for  nomination.  The  following  statements  will  show 
what  was  the  result  of  this  examination.  It  also  shows  the  first 
open  conflict  between  the  advocates  of  ministerial  education  and 
the  defenders  of  an  illiterate  ministry:  A  majority  of  the  com- 
mittee was  in  favor  of  ordaining  the  three  candidates.  The  mi- 
nority was  opposed  to  it.  Therefore  two  reports  were  made  out 
and  presented  to  the  Conference.  The  reasons  assigned  by  the 
majority  were,  in  the  case  of  one  of  the  candidates,  that  a  chris- 
tening or  a  marriage  might  be  desired  when  the  elder  in  charge 
might  be  at  one  end  of  the  circuit,  and  the  minister,  though  upon 
the  spot,  would  be  unable  to  act;  another  reason  given  in  another 
ease  was,  that  though  there  was  no  special  need  for  the  brother  in 


156 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


question,  "  he  might  be  ordained  to  gratify  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence." Respecting  the  third  case,  it  was  argued  that  should  the 
brother  be  placed  where  a  matrimonial  ceremony  was  to  be  per- 
formed, he,  if  ordained,  could  serve,  and  being  a  poor  old  man, 
it  would  greatly  aid  him,  as  thereby  he  might  make  some  money. 
But  the  minority  report  assigned  one  reason  why  they  should 
not  be  ordained.  It  was  that  the  candidates  were  all  disqualified 
for  the  office,  because  they  had  not  the  information  required  by 
the  Discipline.  The  counter  report  produced  quite  an  excitement, 
and  one  brother  violently  demanded  whether  we  wanted  a  man 
to  know  how  to  read  Hebrew,  Greek  and  Latin  before  we  would 
ordain  him.  In  the  speech  that  followed,  education  and  those 
who* favored  it  were  denounced. 

In  reply  to  this  the  minority  arose  and  said  that  the  remarks 
were  altogether  gratuitous,  because  the  report  said  nothing  at  all 
about  Latin,  Greek  or  Hebrew,  but  was  based  simply  upon  two 
instruments — the  Discipline  and  the  Bible.  The  minority  also 
maintained  that  every  member  of  the  Conference,  and  therefore, 
the  whole  Conference,  was  most  solemnly  bound  to  heed  the  Dis- 
cipline, and  still  more  to  heed  the  Bible.  At  the  conclusion  of 
these  remarks  Bishop  Brown  called  the  attention  of  the  Confer- 
ence to  the  fact  that  he  was  placed  in  the  chair  not  to  carry  out 
the  opinions  of  any  man  nor  set  of  men,  but  to  execute  the  Dis- 
cipline to  its  very  letter,  and  he  also  declared,  in  a  very  decided 
and  emphatic  manner,  that  if  the  whole  Conference  voted  for 
the  ordination  of  the  said  brethren,  in  view  of  their  disqualifi- 
cations he  could  not  and  would  not  ordain  them.  He  also  added, 
that  when  men  are  sent  out  destitute  of  the  needed  qualifications, 
the  people  do  not  blame  the  Conference,  but  the  Bishop.  As  a  final 
result  the  report  of  the  minority  was  adopted.  The  Conference 
also  adopted  the  preamble  and  resolutions  on  education  which 
had  been  previously  adopted  by  the  Philadelphia  Conference. 
At  this  Conference  the  church  at  Fredericktown,  Md.,  which  had 
hitherto  been  a  part  of  the  Fredericktown  Circuit,  petitioned 
Conference  to  give  them  a  stationed  preacher,  L  e.,  to  convert 
them  into  a  station,  but  this  prayer  was  not  granted. 

Brother  John  Peck,  of  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  prayed  Conference  to 
recommend  some  means  whereby  he  could  be  relieved  from  the 
heavy  debt  for  which  he  became  responsible  on  account  of  the 
church  in  Carlisle,  Pa.,  whereupon  a  committee,  consisting  of 
Brothers  David  Ware,  George  Hogarth  and  John  Jordan,  was 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


157 


appointed  to  devise  some  ways  and  means  to  relieve  Brother 
Peck.  After  "due  consideration, "  they  recommended  that  the 
trustees  of  the  church  at  Carlisle  become  securities  of  Brother 
Peck  by  endorsing  a  note  for  the  amount  due,  with  interest,  at 
the  most  extended  time,  and  that  the  said  trustees,  with  Brother 
Peck,  immediately  institute  collections,  or  by  other  means  "raise 
moneys  to  protect  the  note  when  due." 

The  Columbia  Circuit,  which  was  located  entirely  in  the  state 
of  Pennsylvania,  prayed  Conference  at  this  time  to  detach  them 
from  its  jurisdiction  and  place  them  under  the  control  of  the 
Philadelphia  District.  Another  violent  excitement  was  produced 
by  this  petition.  Some,  especially  those  living  in  the  state  of 
Maryland,  contended  that  the  prayer  ought  not  to  be  granted 
because  the  churches  of  that  circuit  had  been  planted  by  the 
agency  of  the  Baltimore  ministry,  while  on  the  other  hand, 
brethren  living  on  that  circuit  argued  that  their  prayer  should 
be  granted  because  it  was  more  convenient  for  them  to  attend  the 
Philadelphia  Conference  than  this.  The  question  was  put  to 
vote  and  decided  in  the  negative. 

From  the  parochial  returns  it  was  found  that  the  Lord  had  so 
prospered  the  labors  of  the  ministry  since  the  last  meeting  of 
Conference  that  there  was  an  increase  of  nine  hundred  and  six- 
teen members.  The  two-cent  collections  amounted  to  $88.59, 
and  the  contingent  collection  to  $138.11.  A  glance  at  the  statis- 
tics of  the  Sabbath-schools  and  temperance  societies  shows  that 
at  Baltimore  City  Station  the  Sunday-school  at  Bethel  Church 
contained  one  hundred  and  twenty  scholars  and  eighteen  teachers, 
while  the  school  at  Ebenezer  Church  had  one  hundred  and  seventy 
scholars  and  thirty-eight  teachers.  At  Columbia,  Pa.,  the  Sunday- 
school  included  ninety-four  scholars  and  sixteen  teachers,  and 
that  at  Harrisburg  had  fifty-three  scholars  and  fourteen  teachers. 
In  Chambersburg  and  Messersburg,  each,  there  was  one  school 
taught  by  whites.  There  were  temperance  societies — one  each  at 
Bethel  and  Ebenezer,  in  Baltimore,  Union,  Columbia,  Harrisburg, 
Messersburg  and  Chambersburg. 

On  the  morning  of  the  20th  of  May,  1843,  the  pastors  of  the 
respective  churches  in  the  Philadelphia  regions  met  and  com- 
menced their  annual  transactions  with  Bishop  Brown  at  their 
head.  There  were  local  and  itinerant  elders  to  the  number  of 
twenty-one,  deacons  to  the  number  of  thirteen,  and  preachers  to 
the  number  of  twenty-four,  making  a  total  of  fifty-eight. 


158 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Aaron  Johnson,  Henderson  Davis,  Henry  Davis.  Abraham 
Crippen  and  Alexander  Wayman  were  admitted  on  trial — some 
as  local,  others  as  itinerants.  Samuel  Murray,  Daniel  A.  Payne, 
George  Greenly,  Lewis  S.  Conover,  John  Butler,  \yardell  W. 
Parker  and  Levin  Bond  were  admitted  into  full  connection.  Rev. 
Willis  Xazrev  was  ordained  an  elder,  Lewis  Conover  was  located, 
and  Rev.  Richard  Williams  was  placed  on  the  supernumerary  list. 

At  this  time  and  always  prior,  the  Union  Church,  situated  in 
the  Northern  Liberties,  was  under  the  same  pastorate  as  Bethel ; 
but  the  congregation  of  Bethel  numbered  two  thousand  souls, 
while  that  of  Union  numbered  two  hundred.  It  was  therefore 
impossible  for  the  stationed  preacher  (who  was  none  other  than 
the  Bishop  himself)  to  give  Union  that  attention  which  her  own 
individual  affairs  demanded.  She  therefore  petitioned  Conference 
to  give  her  a  separate  minister.  This  was  granted  by  vote  of  the 
Conference,  but  the  trustees  of  Bethel  Church,  being  also  the 
trustees  of  Union,  refused  to  allow  the  Bishop  to  execute  the 
mandate  of  the  Conference. 

The  Little  Wesley  Church,  Philadelphia,  and  Mount  Zion,  in 
Hamilton  Village,  sometimes  called  West  Philadelphia,  were 
placed  in  a  circuit. 

Conference  went  into  an  election  for  delegates  to  the  ensuing 
General  Conference,  with  the  result  of  making  a  choice  of  Joseph 
P.  Cox,  Daniel  A.  Payne,  David  Ware,  Stephen  Smith,  Levin 
Tillman,  Shadrack  Bassett,  Aaron  Johnson,  Robert  Collins  and 
Jeremiah  Miller.  It  was  then  made  the  duty  of  the  traveling 
preachers  to  take  up  collections  throughout  their  respective 
circuits  and  stations  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  delegates. 
D.  A.  Payne  presented  the  preamble  and  resolutions  touching 
ministerial  education,  as  in  a  former  instance,  and  which  will 
be  found  given  in  full  when  the  subject  of  ministerial  education 
is  reached. 

The  report  on  Sabbath-schools  showed  that  within  the  bounds 
of  this  Conference  there  were  only  seven,  in  which  were  six 
hundred  and  seventeen  scholars,  taught  by  seventy-five  teachers. 
There  were  then  three  day  schools,  embracing  about  one  hundred 
and  six  scholars,  with  three  teachers.  There  were  six  temperance 
societies,  embracing  about  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  forty- 
one  members.  One  of  these  was  founded  by  Dr.  James  G.  Bias, 
and  contained  one  thousand  and  forty-seven  members.  It  is 
here  proper  to  mention,  as  history  demands  it,  that  of  colored 


Literature  cmd  Various  Subjects. 


159 


men  there  was  none  living  in  the  American  Union  who  showed 
the  same  amount  of  zeal  in  the  good  cause  as  did  this  same  Dr. 
James  ( ! .  Bias. 

As  in  the  Baltimore  regions,  so  in  this,  the  parochial  reports 
show  that  the  God  of  Zion  had  graciously  visited  his  people,  for 
there  was  an  increase  among  the  Philadelphia  churches  of  one 
thousand  and  thirty-seven  souls.  And  the  financial  report  stood 
fair,  for  the  two-cent  moneys  collected  amounted  to  $77.72,  and 
the  contingent  collection  to  $254.05. 

In  the  c  ity  of  New  York,  on  the  10th  of  June,  1843,  the  pas- 
tors of  the  churches  in  the  New  York  regions  were  seen  engaged 
in  the  transaction  of  their  business  pertaining  to  the  pastorates 
in  their  charge,  and  continued  in  session  during  a  period  of  ten 
days.  Bishop  Brown  presided  alone,  but  there  were  present 
fifteen  elders,  thirteen  deacons  and  ten  preachers.  The  Confer- 
ence sat  with  open  doors.  At  this  Conference  a  young  man  of 
fine  talents  and  liberal  education  was  admitted  on  trial  in  the 
itinerant  department.  He  had  formerly  been  a  student  of  Oneida 
Institute. 

J.  P.  Campbell,  Charles  Burch  and  Thomas  W.  Jackson  were 
admitted  into  full  connection.  The  first  named  and  last  were 
also  ordained  ciders.  Brother  Charles  Burch  was  also  ordained 
a  deacon. 

The  election  of  delegates  to  the  General  Conference  was  held, 
and  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Samuel  Edwards,  Edmund  Crosby, 
Caesar  Springfield,  Benjamin  Croger,  George  Hogarth  and  Charles 
Burch. 

The  New  York  territory  was  enlarged  by  the  creation  of  two 
new  circuits.  One  was  the  Haverstnnv,  which  included  Nyack, 
Goshen,  Rockland  and  Passaic.  There  was  another  that  included 
Hudson,  Sandy  Lake,  Lennox  and  Bethlehem.  There  was 
growth  in  another  way  as  well.  As  with  the  other  two  regions 
already  noticed,  the  Great  God  of  Zion  had  poured  out  his  Holy 
Spirit  most  graciously  upon  the  New  York  churches,  so  that  the 
number  added  to  their  fellowship  was  seven  hundred  and  forty- 
nine  souls. 

The  general  book  steward  laid  before  the  ministry  the  claims 
of  the  book  concern,  endeavoring  to  show  each  one  his  relations 
to  it,  and  his  duty  to  sustain  it,  urging  upon  all  who  were  in- 
debted to  it  their  obligations  to  make  speedy  remittance,  and 
clearly  showing  how  their  want  of  punctuality  had  embarrassed 


160 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


its  movement.  The  book  steward  also  paid  out  to  preachers  and 
others  for  commissions  the  sum  of  $104.38.  This  shows  that  the 
book  concern  was  in  a  better  condition  than  it  had  ever  been 
before.  Its  contingent  expenses  were  $222.92,  while  the  net 
gain  on  books,  pamphlets,  etc.,  sold  and  unsold,  according  to 
their  specific  valuation,  subscribers  to  the  magazine  included, 
was  898(5.79. 

When  the  opportunity  came  for  those  useful  bands  of  Chris- 
tian women — the  Benevolent  Daughters  of  Conference,  the 
United  Daughters  of  Conference  and  the  Rising  Daughters  of 
Conference — to  lay  their  annual  free-will  offering  upon  the  Lord's 
altar,  they  gave  a  total  of  8117.68,  which,  up  to  this  date,  was 
the  largest  sum  ever  realized  from  this  source.  The  collections 
for  the  two-cent  fund  amounted  to  $95.32,  and  the  contingent 
collections  to  874.75.  Sabbath-school  statistics  showed  that  there 
were  then  in  the  bounds  of  the  New  York  District  eight  schools 
and  two  hundred  and  seventy-three  pupils.  The  temperance 
statistics  showed  the  existence  of  ten  temperance  societies,  em- 
bracing nine  hundred  and  forty-nine  members. 

It  was  at  this  Conference  that  the  Rev.  Noah  C.  W.  Cannon 
appeared  for  the  third  time  as  an  author.  The  work  produced 
this  time  by  his  pen  is  entitled  "History  of  the  African  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church.''  Of  its  literary  merits  we  shall  speak 
elsewhere.  Here  we  shall  only  say  that  he  was  considered  as 
having  violated  the  resolution  of  the  last  General  Conference, 
which  prohibited  our  preachers  from  publishing  any  works 
touching  the  history,  doctrine,  or  discipline  of  our  Church 
unless  permission  was  given  them.  The  same  General  Confer- 
ence had  directed  the  general  book  steward  to  make  such  a  pub- 
lication for  their  special  benefit,  and  the  present  publication 
could  not  be  accepted  as  authoritative. 

The  brethren  terminated  their  annual  deliberations  by  passing 
resolutions  in  favor  of  education,  temperance,  Sunday-schools 
and  all  kindred  subjects,  by  denouncing  policy  and  lottery  deal- 
ing as  covetousness  and  stealing,  and  by  adopting  the  course  of 
study  laid  down  by  the  last  Philadelphia  Conference  for  the 
training  of  the  young  in  the  ministry. 

This  year  the  Canadian  churches  met  in  Toronto  on  July  1st, 
1843.  Three  elders,  one  deacon,  and  three  licentiates  were 
present.  Elder  Cannon  filled  the  chair,  as  neither  of  the  Bishops 
were  present.    Very  little  business  was  done,  no  new  ideas  being 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


101 


advanced,  and  only  the  re-echoes  of  the  doings  of  the  other  Con- 
ferences were  heard  on  the  usual  subjects  of  education,  etc.  It 
was  decided  to  make  an  effort  to  influence  the  preachers  to  have 
their  churches  closed  at  a  suitable  hour  of  the  night,  conforming 
to  the  customs  of  the  communities  where  they  live,  "thereby 
removing  much  of  the  odium  commonly  thrown  upon  our  reli- 
gious worship." 

It  appears  that  there  had  been  an  .attempt  to  organize  the  ( in- 
ference at  St.  ( 'at  heri ne's.  because  of  some  local  differences,  which 
must  account  for  the  small  number  present  at  Toronto. 

On  the  31st  of  August,  1843,  the  churches  of  Indiana  were  in 
annual  session  in  Indianapolis,  with  Bishop  Brown  conducting 
their  movements.  Brother  Robert  Jones  was  made  the  Bishop's 
assistant,  and  Brother  yEneas  Mcintosh  secretary.  Henry  Cole 
and  Isaac  Knight  were  put  on  probation,  and  Thomas  Elsworth 
was  admitted  into  full  connection.  Byrd  Parker,  Willis  II. 
Revels,  Robert  Johnson  and  Major  J.  Wilkerson  were  ordained 
elders,  and  Israel  Cole,  /Eneas  Mcintosh  and  James  Curtis  were 
ordained  deacons,  and  the  ranks  of  the  itinerancy  were  added  to 
by  Major  J.  Wilkerson,  iEncas  Mcintosh,  Henry  Cole,  Byrd 
Parker  and  Henry  Travan.  Joseph  P.  Dunlap  was  the  only  one 
who  was  located.  The  election  for  delegates  to  the  ensuing  Gen- 
eral Conference  was  held,  and  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Thomas 
Elsworth,  Dennis  Kiza,  Benjamin  Shipworth,  Peter  Smith  and 
Nathaniel  Newton.  William  P.  Quinn  was  appointed  district 
book  steward,  and  a  day  of  fasting  and  prayer  to  Almighty  God 
was  set  apart — the  11th  of  April — inasmuch  as  it  was  the  date  of 
the  founding  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia. 
It  was  also  made  obligatory  upon  the  circuit,  stationed  and  local 
preachers  to  hold  public  services  on  that  day  wherever  it  would 
be  practicable.  This  was  declared  to  be  a  standing  rule  for  each 
year.  The  ministers  also  decreed  that  no  church  should  be  suf- 
fered to  be  built  among  us,  "  until  a  deed,  according  to  our  Dis- 
cipline, be  first  procured,  or  a  title  bond  is  obtained  for  double 
the  value  of  the  ground  on  which  the  church  is  to  be  built." 

The  amount  realized  to  meet  the  contingent  expenses  amounted 
only  to  $40.22.  The  Lord  of  the  harvest,  however,  did  not  omit 
to  visit  the  churches,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  number  of  souls 
added  to  their  communion  the  past  year,  which  was  five  hundred 
and  ninety-eight, 
U 


162 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  little  town  of  HilLsboro  was  the  place  of  meeting  for  the 
ministers  of  the  churches  placed  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Ohio  District  while  they  Avere  congregated  to  make  their  paro- 
chial reports  for  the  year  1843.  They  opened  their  business 
on  the  15th  of  September.  Bishop  Brown  presided,  and  Thomas 
Woodson  and  A.  R.  Green  were  chosen  secretaries.  Eleven  eld- 
ers, seven  deacons,  and  five  licentiates  constituted  the  enrolled 
numbers.  Solomon  H.  Thompson,  Carey  S.  Hargrave  and  Joseph 
Fowler  were  admitted  on  trial.  Matthew  T.  Newsum,  John 
Gibbons,  Simon  Ratcliff  and  M.  M.  Clark  were  also  admitted. 
John  Gibbons  and  Daniel  Winslow  were  ordained  elders.  We 
find  three  members  numbered  with  the  dead — James  Byrd,  who 
died  November  7th,  1842,  aged  fifty-eight;  Samuel  Ente,  who 
died  April  7th,  1843,  and  an  aged  minister  of  the  Gospel,  Fred- 
erick Rives,  who  died  June  15th,  1843,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-six  years.  It  is  written  of  Brother  Byrd  that  he  traveled 
and  labored  several  years  in  the  itinerant  service  of  the  Church; 
while  of  Brother  Ente  it  is  said,  that  he  commenced  bis  labors 
as  an  itinerant  in  1829,  in  the  Baltimore  Conference,  and  that 
year  served  under  Brother  Joseph  Harper  on  the  Harrisburg  Cir- 
cuit. The  next  year  he  offered  himself  as  a  missionary  to  the 
Isle  of  Hayti,  but  was  not  sent.  The  same  year  he  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  Philadelphia  District,  in  which  he  located  in  1831. 
Brother  Turner  Roberts,  who  was  last  year  transferred  to  the 
Indiana  Conference,  was  this  year  transferred  back  to  this. 

Conference  planned  the  circuits  within  its  boundaries  in  the 
following  manner:  Chillicothe  Circuit  was  made  to  embrace  Chil- 
licothe,  Dry  Run,  Pepee,  Big  Bottom:  Gallipolis  Circuit:  Galli- 
polis,  Big  Run,  Strait  Creek,  Piketown,  Portsmouth;  Zanesville 
Circuit:  Zanesville,  Dresden,  Newark,  Meig's  Creek;  Captiene 
Circuit:  Captiene,  St.  Clairsville,  Steubenville,  Mount  Pleasant, 
Macantyre,  Stillwater;  Hillsboro  Circuit:  Hillsboro,  Grassy 
Branch,  Wilmington,  Greenfield,  Richland,  Red  Oak,  White  Oak, 
Winchester;  Hamilton  Circuit:  Hamilton,  Springboro,  Palmyra, 
Harveysburg,  Lebanon,  Xenia. 

The  election  of  delegates  to  the  approaching  General  Confer- 
ence resulted  in  the  choice  of  Abram  D.  Lewis,  Samuel  Johnson, 
John  Peck  and  Samuel  Collons,  of  Pittsburg,  and  Joseph  Fowler, 
of  Cincinnati. 

Educational  statistics  showed  improvement  among  our  people, 
for  there  were  reported  within  the  bounds  of  this  Conference  at 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects, 


163 


least  thirteen  common  schools  and  about  eleven  Sunday-schools, 
including  over  three  hundred  children.  The  report  on  temper- 
ance showed  the  existence  of  eight  societies,  but  the  reports  arc 
by  no  means  full.  Then;  was  an  increase  of  members,  showing 
that  the  Saviour  of  sinners  had  graciously  visited  the  Ohio 
churches  the  past  twelve  months,  for  the  parochial  reports  show 
the  number  of  one  thousand  and  seven. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  excitement  on  the  subject  of 
education.  It  is  proper  here  to  remark  that  this  excitement  in- 
creased as  the  year  1843  drew  to  a  close,  creating  on  the  part 
of  those  who  were  in  favor  of  ignorance  and  superstition  feelings 
of  the  bitterest  and  most  uncharitable  kind,  and  on  the  part  of 
those  who  were  friendly  to  an  intelligent  and  a  thoroughly  edu- 
cated as  well  as  holy  ministry,  a  firm  resolution  to  speak  and  to 
write  till  the  dormant  energies  of  the  whole  Connection  should 
be  awakened  and  enlisted  on  the  side  of  progress.  The  state  of 
feeling  cannot  better  be  depicted  than  by  quoting  the  language 
of  the  Rev.  George  Hogarth  in  an  editorial  from  his  pen  touching 
the  subject: 

Much  as  is  said  for  and  against  the  steps  taken  by  our  brother  in  his 
epistles  for  the  improvement  of  the  ministry,  no  one  has  as  yet  come 
forward  with  his  pen  to  propose  anything  better.  Great  fear  is  entertained 
by  some  that  if  the  measures  proposed  by  him  are  adopted  by  the  General 
Conference,  discord  and  dissolution  will  necessarily  take  place  in  the 
Church  between  the  ignorant  and  intelligent  portions  of  it ;  yet  these  very 
brethren  who  manifest  such  fear  will  not  come  forward  and  propose  any- 
thing as  a  substitute  to  the  measure  offered  by  our  brother.  They  admit 
themselves  to  be  friendly  to  education,  to  an  intelligent  ministry,  and  an 
intelligent  congregation;  yet  they  appear  to  be  backward  about  coming 
forward  with  their  objections  and  views  on  the  subject,  that  we  may  print 
them  so  as,  if  they  are  better,  to  counteract  those  already  offered. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  great  work  of  salvation  this  year 
as  we  have  noticed  the  different  districts.  It  was  a  remarkable  out- 
pouring of  the  Spirit,  and  began  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  in  the 
following  manner  and  under  these  circumstances :  A  young  Pres- 
byterian minister,  Andrew  Harris,  of  classical  attainments,  took 
suddenly  sick,  and  died  at  the  end  of  the  week.  He  was  the  pastor 
of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  color.  Rev.  Theodore 
S.  YY right,  of  New  York,  came  by  invitation  to  Philadelphia,  with 
a  view  to  be  present  at  the  funeral  of  Brother  Harris.  While  there 
he  preached  in  the  vacated  pulpit  from  Psalms,  cxix.,  59-60,  "  I 
thought  on  my  ways,"  etc.    The  sermon  made  a  deep  and  visible 


164 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


impression  on  the  audience,  and  yet  it  was  made  evident  by  no  sign 
beyond  the  fixed  attention  of  the  people.  His  sermon  was  fol- 
lowed by  an  exhortation  by  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  and  an  invitation 
to  all  who  felt  concerned  about  their  souls  to  come  forward  and 
occupy  the  front  pews.  This  invitation  was  immediately  re- 
sponded  to  by  some  half  dozen  young  men  and  women,  with  whom 
we  prayed  about  an  hour  or  two.  This  encouraged  us  to  protract 
the  meetings,  and  every  night  witnessed  an  increased  interest  on 
the  part  of  the  people,  and  a  deepened  zeal  on  the  part  of  the 
ministry.  Soon  the  cries  of  the  anxious  inquirer  were  exchanged 
for  the  shouts  and  rejoicings  of  the  happy  converts.  The  work 
extended  from  St.  Mary's  street  to  the  surrounding  churches. 
As  it  deepened  sinners  were  awakened  and  converted  to  God  by 
scores  and  hundreds,  till  the  whole  city  was  enveloped  in  the 
hallowed  flames,  and  in  every  house  and  every  church  were  heard 
the  cries  of  the  convicted  sinner  or  the  praises  of  the  redeemed. 
Bethel  shared  largely  in  the  grace  of  God.  Her  ministers  preached 
with  more  than  common  unction,  and  her  converts  were  counted 
by  hundreds.  Among  the  precious  souls  gathered  into  the 
ark  of  safety  during  this  season  of  refreshing  from  the  presence 
of  the  Lord,  were  many  of  the  best  educated  and  most  respect- 
able youths  of  the  city,  and  that,  too,  of  both  sexes.  Nor  was 
the  work  confined  to  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  It  extended  to 
all  the  churches  of  the  Conference  District.  A  voice  from  Prince- 
ton, N,  J.,  writes  under  date  of  February  9th,  1843: 

Dear  Brother  Hogarth  : 

While  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  has  been  refreshing  with  the  show- 
ers of  his  grace  other  portions  of  his  vineyard,  we  rejoice  that  we  have  not 
been  left  to  mourn  over  a  barren  and  thirsty  soil.  It  will  doubtless  be 
pleasing  to  the  friends  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  more  particularly  to 
those  who  have  labored  in  this  part.of  the  work  in  years  gone  by,  to  learn 
that  the  ground  which  they  spent  so  much  labor  to  prepare  has  become  a 
fruitful  soil,  and  the  seed  which  with  so  much  care  and  anxiety  was  sown, 
has  been  watered,  and  promises  a  harvest  a  hundred  fold;  nay  more, 
already  its  fruit  appears.  The  work  has  not  been  confined  to  any  particular 
part  of  the  circuit,  but  at  different  and  almost  every  part  of  our  charge. 
More  than  one  hundred  have  joined  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  during  the  Con- 
ference year  thus  far. 

Oar  people  are  seeking  for  holiness  of  heart,  and  our  prayer  is  that  God 
will  sanctify  the  Church  and  convert  the  world. 

Another  account  of  the  work  is  from  the  Salem  Circuit,  N.  J. 
It  bears  date  of  February  11th,  the  same  year: 


Literature  and  Various  Subjects. 


H;r, 


While  the  Great  I  lead  of  the  Church  has  been  visiting  various  parts  of 
the  world  with  the  outpouring  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  he  has  not  forgotten 
this  part  of  his  vineyard.  A  sacred  shower  of  his  grace  lias  lately  been 
experienced  on  this  circuit,  and  many  souls,  through  its  divine  influence, 
have  become  awakened  and  brought  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Christ  Jesus;  and  from  the  present  appearance  of  things  I  am  lead  to 
believe  that  there  are  many  more  who  are  seriously  inquiring  the  way  to 
salvation. 

I  have  taken  into  society  on  probation  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
persons,  who,  I  think,  will  become  useful  members  during  their  day  and 
generation  to  the  Church.  Pray  for  me,  brother,  that  the  good  Lord  may 
continue  to  bless  the  feeble  labors  of  his  servant,  that  he  may  become 
more  instrumental  in  his  hands  in  the  awakening  of  poor  sinners  out  of 
their  wretched  state  of  slumber  and  death. 

Brother  Israel  Scott  also  writes  from  still  another  point,  Bur- 
lington, N.  J.,  under  date  of  May  7th,  1843: 

The  Lord  has  been  pleased  to  visit  us  here  in  a  powerful  manner.  Dur- 
ing our  protracted  meetings  about  fifty  were  added  to  the  Church,  and 
many  testified  that  they  had  found  the  Lord  to  the  pardoning  of  their 
sins.  At  Snow's  Hill  eighteen  were  added  to  the  Church.  The  Lord  truly 
has  visited  us  on  this  circuit,  and  many  souls  have  been  inquiring  the  way 
to  Zion. 

As  for  Baltimore,  salvation  was  poured  down  upon  it  like  a 
flood.    Bishop  Waters,  who  was  at  the  head  of  its  pastorate,  says : 

The  work  of  the  Lord  is  going  on  with  triumph  among  us.  The  enemy 
has  no  foothold  but  what  is  disputed  inch  by  inch. 

Brother  William  H.  G.  Brown,  then  the  district  book  steward, 
writes  from  the  same  point,  and  says: 

There  has  been  lately  one  of  the  greatest  revivals  of  religion  known  for 
a  long  time  in  this  city.  About  seven  hundred  members  have  become 
attached  to  Bethel  Church.  The  church  has  become  so  crowded  that  dur- 
ing service  they  are  obliged  to  sit  in  each  others'  laps. 

Brother  Abram  D.  Lewis,  writing  from  Pittsburg,  says: 

Within  the  period  of  eight  weeks  there  were  three  hundred  and  two 
members  added  to  the  Church,  one  hundred  and  eighty-six  of  whom  have 
been  happily  converted  to  God,  and  many  profess  sanctification. 

This  shows  what  the  Lord  was  doing  in  the  Ohio  District. 
The  editor  of  the  Church  Magazine,  writing  from  New  York, 
says: 

Within  a  few  months  past  the  Lord  has  in  a  remarkable  manner  re- 
freshed his  churches  in  various  parts  of  our  country  by  a  glorious  out- 
pouring of  his  Holy  Spirit  upon  them,  which  has  resulted  in  a  general 


166 


Hktory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


rush  of  earnest  inquirers  at  the  sacred  altars  for  salvation — hundreds,  yea, 
thousands,  have  been  happily  converted  to  God  and  initiated  into  the 
Church,  and  are  now  on  their  march  to  the  heavenly  Canaan.  Many 
churches  of  Methodists,  Presbyterians  and  Baptists  have  held  their  pro- 
tracted meetings  for  several  weeks  in  succession.  Our  portion  of  the  Gen- 
eral church  has  also  participated  in  these  glorious  revivals  of  religion,  as 
may  be  observed  in  the  communications  from  our  brethren.  This  precious 
work  of  salvation,  we  are  happy  to  say,  continues  in  most  of  the  churches 
with  the  same  blessed  results.  We  sincerely  hope  that  the  Lord  may  con- 
tinue  to  carry  it  on  among  all  his  followers  in  all  portions  of  his  Zion,  until 
righteousness  shall  cover  the  earth  as  the  waters  cover  the  face  of  the  great 
deep. 

So  the  Redeemer  of  the  world  visited  the  churches  in  the 
memorable  year  of  1843,  and  opened  up  the  flood-gates  of  sal- 
vation through  his  saving  presence. 


PART  SECOND. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


OPENING  OF  A  NEW  ERA. 

A  New  Period  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church— Seventh  General  Conference— 
Committee  Appointed  on  Revision  of  Discipline— Condition  of  the 
Colored  Inhabitants  of  Illinois  and  Indiana — Work  in  Kentucky  and 
.Missouri— Election  and  Ordination  of  William  Paul  Quinn  to  the  Epis- 
copacy—Office of  General  Book  Steward  Created— Home  and  Foreign 
Missionary  Society —  Conference  of  1844 — Good  News  from  Canada. 


ITH  the  year  1844  a  new  period  in  the  history  of  the 


African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  opens.    This  year 


the  transactions  begin  with  the  sayings  and  doings  of  the 
Seventh  General  Conference.  This  body  met  in  the  city  of 
Pittsburg,  Pa.,  the  6th  of  May.  Two  Bishops  were  present,  Rt. 
Rev.  Morris  Brown  and  Rt.  Rev.  Edward  Waters.  Thirty-nine 
traveling  preachers  occupied  seats,  and  the  local  delegates  were 
twenty-seven  in  number,  from  the  following  five  districts :  Balti- 
more, Philadelphia,  New  York,  Ohio,  Indiana,  the  total  number 
being  sixty-eight.  M.  M.  Clark,  George  Hogarth  and  David 
Ware  were  the  secretaries.  Among  the  important  items  of  busi- 
ness that  engaged  the  attention  of  this  body  was  that  of  the  Dis- 
cipline. A  committee  was  appointed  on  the  revision,  and  Daniel 
A.  Payne,  George  Weir,  Benjamin  Croger,  A.  R.  Green  and  Willis 
Revels  were  the  appointees.  At  the  time  when  the  matter  came 
vi])  before  the  General  Conference,  and  the  reconsideration  of  the 
Preface  to  the  Discipline  took  place,  some  were  in  favor  of  omit- 
ting it  in  our  future  publications  of  the  Discipline;  but  the 
majority  were  opposed  to  such  a  measure  as  exceedingly  wrong 
and  heretical.  Those  who  held  views  favorable  to  the  omission 
based  their  desire  upon  the  supposition  that  its  retention  in  the 
Discipline  had  a  tendency  to  perpetuate  malignant  feelings 
against  our  white  brethren  of  the  M.  E.  Church.  Others  believed 
no  such  assertion,  and,  therefore,  the  majority  voted  to  retain 
the  Preface  without  alteration  or  amendment.  The  Discipline, 
however,  was  amended  in  the  following  particulars: 


(167) 


168 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  phrases  "junior"  and  "senior"  Bishop  were  altered  to 
"joint  Bishops."  The  basis  of  the  election  of  delegates  to  the 
General  Conference  was  changed  as  to  the  number  of  traveling- 
preachers  in  each  Annual  Conference  so  as  to  read :  "  The  General 
Conference  shall  consist  of  one  delegate  for  every  four  hundred 
lay  members  returned  at  the  previous  Annual  Conference,"  and 
the  power  to  limit  the  hounds  of  each  elective  department  was 
lodged  in  the  hands  of  the  several  Annual  Conferences.  Here 
the  admission  of  lay  delegates  to  the  membership  of  the  General 
Conference  did  really  commence,  but  such  was  the  feeling  of  the 
itinerant  preachers  concerning  their  superior  right  to  govern, 
that  they  allowed  only  lay  preachers,  that  is,  local  preachers,  to 
represent  the  laity.  It  was  also  provided  that  in  the  absence  of 
the  Bishops  Conference  should  "choose  a  president  pro  tern,  to 
preside  over  its  deliberations.*  On  the  fourth  day  the  Discipline 
was  amended  in  five  points:  1st.  The  regulation  of  the  proceeds 
of  the  book  concern.  2d.  The  elements  to  constitute  the  Annual 
Conferences.  3d.  Regulation  of  the  contingent  expenses.  4th. 
Limiting  the  numberof  the  Annual  Conferences.  5th.  Whereas, 
the  General  Conference,  prior  to  this  period,  could  expel  a  Bishop 
for  "  improper  conduct."  That  phrase  was  stricken  out,  and  the 
phrase  "immoral  conduct"  inserted  in  its  place. f  Upon  this 
day  Rev.  Daniel  A.  Payne  introduced  a  resolution  to  institute  a 
course  of  studies  for  the  education  of  the  ministry.  As  soon  as 
read  it  was  seconded,  and.  convinced  as  he  was  of  the  reasonable- 
ness and  utility  of  the  measure,  he  thought  that  the  majority  of 
the  Conference  looked  at  it  in  the  same  favorable  light,  and  that 
it  would  be  carried  without  much  opposition;  he,  therefore,  did 
not  make  any  speech  for  the  purpose  of  convincing  his  brethren 
of  that  utility  and  excellence  which  he  believed  was  apparent  to 
all.  But  in  that  he  calculated  without  his  host,  for  as  soon  as 
the  Bishop  had  put  the  question  to  the  house,  the  effect  was  like 
unto  that  which  follows  when  a  fire-brand  is  cast  into  a  magazine 
of  powder.  With  the  greatest  apparent  indignation  the  resolu- 
tion was  voted  down  by  a  large  and  overwhelming  majority,  and 
the  house  adjourned  amid  great  excitement.  The  next  day.  the 
fifth  of  the  session,  as  soon  as  the  house  was  opened,  and  first  of 
all,  Rev.  A.  D.  Lewis,  a  brother  of  lofty  stature,  venerable  appear- 
ance, dignified  mien  and  delectable  countenance,  rose  to  his  feet 


*See  Vol.  II.  of  Magazine,  page  4.    tSee  Vol.  II.  of  Magazine,  page  5. 


Opening  of  a  New  Era. 


and  called  for  a  reconsideration  of  the  rejected  proposition. 
His  motion  was  seconded  and  stated  by  the  chair.  This  vener- 
able man  then  advocated  its  claims  and  demonstrated  its  utility 
in  a  speech  of  uncommon  eloquence  and  power.  He  addressed 
the  understanding,  the  conscience,  the  passions  of  the  audience 
till  it  was  bathed  in  tears,  and  from  many  a.  voice  was  heard  the 
impassioned  cry,  tk  Give  us  the  resolution,  give  us  the  resolution." 
It  was  then  put  and  carried  without  a  dissenting  voice.  Imme- 
diately the  Rev.  John  Peck  moved  the  appointment  of  a  com- 
mittee of  seven  "to  select  a  proper  course  of  studies"  for  the 
young  preachers.  It  was  carried,  and  Bishop  Brown  appointed 
Revs.  Daniel  A.  Payne,  II.  C.  Turner,  David  Ware,  Richard  Rob- 
inson, Abram  D.  Lewis,  W.  R.  Revels  and  George  Weir  to  per- 
form the  task.  It  is  also  proper  here  to  say  that  the  indignation 
evinced  outside  the  General  Conference  by  the  intelligent  laity 
was  equal  to  that  excited  inside  among  the  prejudiced  preachers. 
Between  the  rejection  of  the  resolution  in  favor  of  education  on 
the  4th,  and  its  reconsideration  and  adoption  on  the  5th,  wherever 
the  preachers  went  they  were  informed  that  if  the  proposition  to 
educate  the  ministry  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
were  absolutely  rejected,  they  would  withdraw  and  organize;  an 
ecclesiastical  establishment  that  would  be  in  favor  of  such  a 
measure.  Ten  amendments  were  made  to  the  Discipline  the 
fifth  day.  They  relate  to  the  trial  of  traveling  preachers,  the 
admission  of  itinerants  into  Conference,  licensing  local  preach- 
ers, licensing  exhorters,  distilling  and  retailing  spirituous  liquors, 
the  catechetical  instruction  of  children,  public  worship  and  the 
trial  of  laymen.*  On  the  sixth  day  the  Committee  on  Educat  ion 
reported  the  following  scheme  of  studies,  which  was  unanimous- 
ly carried  :  I.  For  exhorters — First  year — the  Bible,  Smith's 
English  Grammar,  Mitchell's  Geography,  our  own  Discipline, 
Wesley's  Notes.  Second  year — Original  Church  of  Christ,  His- 
tory of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Watson's  Life  of  W es- 
ley.  II.  For  preachers — First  year — Smith's  English  Grammar, 
Mitchell's  Geography,  Paley's  Evidences  of  Divine  Revelation, 
History  of  the  Bible,  Homes'  Introduction  (abridged).  Second 
year — Schmucker's  Popular  Theology,  Schmucker's  Mental  Phi- 
losophy, Natural  Theology,  or  Watson's  Institutes.  Third  year 
— Ecclesiastical  History,   Goodrich's  Church  History,  Porter's 


*See  Vol.  II.  of  Magazine,  pp.  6,  7. 


170 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Homiletics  and  D'  Aubigne's  History  of  the  Reformation.  Fourth 
year — Geography  and  Chronology  of  the  Bible,  with  a  review  of 
the  above  studies.  After  the  adoption  of  this  system  of  studies, 
Conference  decreed  that  they  should  be  placed  as  an  appendix 
to  the  Discipline.  Sections  23,  24,  25  and  26  were  re-adopted 
without  alteration,  so  also  were  chapters  3d  and  4th.  *  Petitions 
were  received  from  Harrisburg,  Oxford,  Columbia  and  Mari- 
etta, Pa.,  requesting  that  their  respective  circuits  be  detached 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Baltimore  District  and  attached  to 
that  of  the  Philadelphia.  A  long  and  exciting  debate  followed, 
but  the  prayers  of  the  petitioners  were,  in  the  end,  rejected.  As 
to  the  other  alterations  and  amendments  which  were  made  to 
the  Discipline,  they  are  to  be  found  in  detail  in  the  magazine  of 
that  date"*"  On  the  eighth  day  Elder  Quinn,  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed by  the  General  Conference  of  1840  to  the  very  important 
office  of  missionary  to  plant  churches  in  the  far  West,  made  the 
following  report : 

Dear  Brethren  : — That  duty  I  owe  to  this  General  Conference  and  the 
western  community  at  large,  for  a  faithful  notice  of  what  has  been  done  in 
this  enterprise,  compels  nie  to  submit  for  your  consideration  a  brief  out- 
line of  the  rise  and  progress  of  our  mission  in  the  West.  Being  appointed 
four  years  ago  by  your  honorable  body,  then  in  session  among  our  people 
in  the  states  west  of  Ohio,  I  now  proceed  to  report  to  you  as  follows: 
Number  of  colored  inhabitants  in  the  states  of  Indiana  and  Illinois..] 8,000 


Churches  established   47 

Communicants   1,080 

Local  Preachers   27 

Traveling  Preachers  :   20 

Traveling  Elders   7 

Congregations     72 

Lay  Members   2,000 

Schools   40 

Scholars   920 

Teachers   40 

Colored  Teachers   «°>G 

Sabbath-schools   50 

Scholars   2,000 

Teachers   200 

Colored  Teachers   100 

Temperance  Societies   40 

Camp-meetings   17 


Our  people  in  these  states  are  chiefly  employed  in  agricultural  pursuits, 


*  Magazine,  Vol.  II.,  p.  8. 


t  Magazine,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  9-10-18. 


Opi  ning  of  a  <\<  w  Era. 


171 


and  are  rapidly  improving  themselves  by  cultivation  of  the  ground,  from 
which  they  make,  under  the  providence  of  God,  a  good  living  for  them- 
selves and  families,  and  sustain  churches  and  schools  in  a  manner  truly 
Blirprising.  Although  many  of  them,  within  the  last  ten  or  fifteen  years, 
broke  away  from  the  fetters  of  slavery  and  settled  with  their  families  in 
these  states,  yet,  by  the  dint  of  industry,  they  are  not  only  supporting  their 
families,  schools  and  churches,  but  many  of  them  are  also  acquiring  wealth 
amid  opposing  laws  and  chilling  prejudice.  There  is,  however,  a  very  good 
state  of  feeling  evinced  toward  our  people  by  the  more  enlightened  part  of 
the  white  community  in  those  states.  There  are  many  useful  mechanics 
among  them,  such  as  shoemakers,  blacksmiths  and  carpenters.  They 
have,  in  a  word,  every  constituent  principle  among  them,  when  suitably 
composed,  to  make  them  a  great  and  good  people. 

Beyond  the  limits  of  these  states  the  mission  has  been  extended  to  the 
states  of  Missouri  and  Kentucky.  Though  slave  states,  yet  a  more  friendly 
feeling  exists  towards  our  enterprise  among  the  ruling  authorities  than 
could  be  easily  anticipated.  The  church  located  in  St.  Louis  is  in  a  very 
prosperous  state.  It  numbers  one  hundred  and  fifty  communicants.  Also 
the  church  erected' in  the  city  of  Louisville,  Ky.,  is  in  a  flourishing  con- 
dition. I  am  fully  persuaded  this  mission,  if  faithfully  conducted,  will,  at 
no  distant  period,  accomplish  wonders  for  our  jjeople  settled  in  these  west- 
ern states  in  their  moral  and  religious  elevation.  They  need  nothing  more 
than  proper  encouragement  and  proper  direction  in  order  to  attain  an  ele- 
vated position  that  will  be  truly  enviable. 

This  grand  region  of  missionary  enterprise  is  truly  an  interesting  spot 
to  excite  the  benevolent  sympathies  of  the  spirit  of  missions,  being  broad 
in  its  extent,  inviting  in  its  agricultural  qualities,  and  grand  in  its  commer- 
cial position.  There  is  an  immense  mine  of  mind,  talent  and  social  quali- 
ties, all  lying  measurably  in  embryo,  but  by  a  proper  direction  of  the 
missionary  hammer  and  chisel,  they  can  all  be  shaped  to  fit  in  the  great  spir- 
itual building  of  God." 

This  report  of  Elder  Quinn,  as  a  statement  of  the  condition 
and  prospects  of  our  people  west  of  the  state  of  Ohio,  presents  a 
graphic  view  of  what  they  were  at  that  time,  and  produced  im- 
portant effects  upon  the  minds  of  the  brethren.  For,  up  to  the 
present  moment,  many  of  the  eastern  men  were  prejudiced  against 
him  as  a  man,  but  more  particularly  as  a  candidate  for  the  epis- 
copal office.  The  majority  of  them  went  to  this  General  Confer- 
ence with  the  determination  to  place  another  brother  in  that 
important  office,  but  when  they  saw  how  useful  and  important 
Brother  Quinn  had  been,  they  said  within  themselves,  "  Surely 
this  is  the  man  for  the  Bishopric."  The  episcopacy  was,  there- 
fore, strengthened  by  the  election  and  ordination  of  Rev.  William 
Paul  Quinn  to  the  office  of  Bishop  in  the  Church  of  God  under 
the  following  circumstances : 


172 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  subject  of  electing  and  ordaining  another  Bishop  was  in- 
troduced on  the  ninth  day  of  the  session,  whereupon  a  commit- 
tee of  seven  was  appointed  to  "confer  with  the  Bishops,  Rt.  Rev. 
Morris  Brown  and  Rt.  Rev.  Edward  Waters  (both  of  whom  at 
that  time  were  about  seventy  years  of  age),  "  to  know  of  them 
whether  they  in  their  judgment  would  be  aide  to  travel  through 
the  Connection  the  ensuing  four  years,  and  whether  there  was 
any  necessity  for  the  election  and  ordination  of  another  Bishop." 
The  committee  performed  the  duty  assigned  to  them,  and  re- 
ported the  concurrence  of  the  two  Bishops  in  the  desire  to  see  a 
suitable  man  elected  to  that  high  office,  as  both  felt  their  advanc- 
ing years.  The  next  day,  therefore,  the  brethren  proceeded  to 
the  election  which  placed  Brother  William  P.  Quinn  in  the  epis- 
copal chair,  and  on  Sunday  morning,  May  19th,  1844,  he  was 
consecrated  to  that  office  by  Bishop  Morris  Brown  and  five  ciders. 

The  office  of  general  book  steward  was  created  at  this  Confer- 
ence.* It  was  made  his  duty  to  travel  throughout  the  Connec- 
tion to  solicit  support  for  the  book  concern.  Power  was  given 
him  to  make  arrangements  with  the  district  stewards  so  as  to  be 
supplied  with  books  for  sale  in  different  parts  of  the  Connection, 
to  remove  books  from  one  point  to  another,  wherever  he  deemed 
it  necessary,  giving  his  receipt  for  the  same,  and  to  collect  all 
moneys  from  the  district  stewards,  preachers  and  local  agents. 
He  was  made  amenable  to  the  Annual  Conference,  having  juris- 
diction over  the  book  concern,  and  was  subject  to  the  interroga- 
tions of  any  Annual  Conference  in  whose  territory  he  might  be 
operating,  and  bound  to  answer,  either  in  person  or  by  proxy. 
This  General  Conference  also  constructed  the  Parent  Home  and 
Foreign  Missionary  Society.  The  last  important  act  of  this 
body  was  to  elect  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark  as  general  book  agent  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church.  The  total  amount  of  moneys  collected  for  the 
support  of  this  General  Conference  was  $219.98,  of  which  the 
city  of  Philadelphia  gave  $108.82. 

As  the  important  business  of  the  General  Conference  of  1844 
has  been  laid  before  the  reader,  we  will  now  content  ourselves 
with  making  a  few  general  remarks  on  its  character.  We  believe 
that  we  speak  the  sentiments  of  every  intelligent  and  reflecting 
mind  when  wre  say  that  there  was  never  before  such  an  amount 
of  talent  and  general  information  concentrated  in  any  ecclesias- 

*D.  A.  Payne  was  the  author  of  the  resolution  creating  this  office,  and 
was  subsequently  elected  to  it,  but  declined  to  serve. 


Opening  <>f  a  New  Era. 


L73 


tical  assembly  among  us  since  the  memorable  convention  of 
1816.  And  when  we  consider  the  difficult  and  important  ques- 
tions discussed,  we  believe  that  we  hazard  not  hing  in  saying  that 
there  was  as  much  unanimity  and  order  as  generally  prevail  in 
such  large  and  exciting  meetings.  The  various  amendments  that 
were  made  t<>  the  Discipline,  and  the  new  enactments  that,  were 
ratified,  if  faithfully  executed  by  the  different  officers  of  the 
church,  tended  to  confer  great  and  increasing  benefits  upon  one- 
selves  as  a  church  in  particular  and  the;  country  in  general. 

The  east  was  made  personally  acquainted  with  the  west,  and 
the  west  with  the  east,  and  thereby  friendships  were  formed 
which  tended  not  only  to  prove  beneficial  to  the  individuals  con- 
cerned, but  also  serve  to  strengthen  those  cords  of  union  which 
we  hope  and  pray  will  forever  bind  our  Connection  together,  and 
keep  us  one  till  the  church  militant  shall  be  assembled  with  the 
church  triumphant  in  the  paradise  of  God.  We  cannot  close 
these  remarks  without  briefly  noticing  the  spirit  of  Christian 
union  which  was  manifested  towards  us  by  our  white  brethren 
in  Pittsburg.  Their  churches  were  kindly  opened  for  the  preach- 
ing of  our  clergy,  and  many  of  them  daily  attended  the  delib- 
erations of  the  Conference,  evincing  a  liberality  of  feeling  that 
puts  to  the  blush  that  narrow-heartedness  which  distinguishes 
some  professing  Christians  to-day.  The  General  Conference 
closed  its  deliberations  on  the  20th,  and  the  members  took  leave 
of  the  generous-hearted  citizens  who  had  spared  no  pains  to 
please  and  make  them  comfortable.  This  spirit  leads  us  to 
speak  of  our  journey  to  this  General  Conference  in  this  con- 
nection : 

It  was  on  the  morning  of  May  1st  that  the  majority  of  the 
eastern  delegation  left  Philadelphia  for  the  seat  of  this  General 
Conference,  taking  the  cars  for  Harrisburg,  where  this  mode  of 
travel  was  exchanged  for  the  packet  boat.  At  this  point  several 
white  passengers  joined  us,  among  whom  were  two  clergymen  of 
the  Congregational  Church  in  New  England.  In  this  company 
we  proceeded  to  Hollidaysburg,  again  changing  to  the  cars  for 
Johnstown,  Pa.,  where  we  took  the  packet  boat  for  Pittsburg,  the 
then  smoky  city  of  western  Pennsylvania.  The  journey  occu- 
pied three  days,  and  its  interesting  character  leads  us  to  make 
mention  of  it  here.  The  scenery  through  which  we  passed  was 
indescribably  beautiful,  even  as  we  find  it  nearly  fifty  years  later, 
but  the  mode  of  travel  and  the  time  taken  gave  an  opportunity 


174 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


to  appreciate  the  beauties  of  nature  as  it  is  not  possible  with  the 
swift,  more  direct  locomotion  of  later  days.  Deep  valleys  and 
towering  mountains  were  overspread  with  the  green  drapery  of 
nature;  crystal  springs  gushed  out  of  the  rocky  hills;  rivulets, 
creeks  and  rivers  flowed  in  graceful  meanderings  through  the 
vales,  and  produced  musical  murmurs  among  the  shrubbery  and 
rocks  over  which  they  passed.  The  artificial  waterfalls  of  the 
dams  contrasted  their  deep  bass  with  the  shrill  accents  of  the 
birds,  and  all  things  were  well  adapted  to  inspire  the  mind  with 
emotions  of  wonder,  love  and  praise,  causing  the  soul  "to  look 
through  nature  up  to  nature's  God."  These  valleys,  mountains 
and  rivers  seem  to  have  been  made  to  test  the  genius  of  man. 
And  he  has  gloriously  evinced  his  God-like  power  in  the  struc- 
ture of  canals — those  mimic  rivers,  the  formation  of  railroads,  and 
the  application  of  steam  power  to  these  latter.  He  will  not  be 
overcome  by  difficulties,  for  if  rivers  oppose  the  progress  of  his 
canals,  he  will  glide  over  them  by  means  of  aqueducts;  if  hills 
intervene,  he  will  pierce  their  rugged  bosoms,  and  run  his 
liquid  pathway  through  their  stony  hearts;  he  will  climb  their 
towering  summits  and  descend  their  precipitant  sides  upon  in- 
clined planes,  so  that  neither  length  nor  breadth,  nor  height  nor 
depth,  nor  distance  nor  time,  can  hinder  his  locomotion,  but 
swift  as  the  mountain  eagle  he  flies  from  point  to  point,  and 
unites  the  most  distant  points  of  this  rolling  earth.  But  it  was 
not  nature  alone  that  made  this  journey  an  interesting  one.  It 
was  the  companionship  as  well.  Every  evening  the  company  of 
fifty  assembled  in  the  cabin,  and  one  of  the  clergy  was  appointed 
to  conduct  the  religious  services,  which  consisted  in  reading  and 
expounding  the  Holy  Scriptures,  prayer,  and  singing  the  sweet 
songs  of  Zion.  At  other  times  conversation  embraced  topics 
natural,  political,  moral  and  religious.  The  following  incident 
is  worthy  of  note:  One  of  our  clergymen  had  been  separated 
from  his  brother  when  only  two  months  old  and  sold  into  griev- 
ous bondage.  More  than  thirty-two  years  from  childhood  to 
manhood  had  elapsed,  and  he  had  never  seen  him;  consequently 
he  knew  not  his  person.  That  brother  was  now  on  the  boat  with 
him  as  steward.  He  saw  him  again  and  again,  and  even  spoke 
to  him,  but  knew  him  not,  till  one  of  the  ministers  who  knew 
them  both  introduced  them  to  each  other.  Who  can  describe 
such  a  scene  or  utter  the  rapture  of  their  hearts'?  They  embraced 
— they  kissed  each  other — they  rejoiced — they  wept.    "I  cannot 


Opening  of  a  New  Era. 


175 


express  the  emotion  of  my  soul,"  said  one,  "but  I  feel  all  over." 
The  joyful  surprise,  like  electricity,  went  from  soul  to  soul,  ex- 
citing the  whole  company.  Upon  this  journey,  the  evening  be- 
fore we  reached  Pittsburg,  the  venerable  Bishop  Brown  was  called 
to  the  chair,  and  an  invitation  extended  through  a  committee  to 
one  of  the  passengers,  an  aged  gentleman,  and  one  high  in  civil 
office,  to  address  us.  lie  complied  with  the  request,  and  in  tin; 
midst  of  his  interesting  remarks  urged  us  with  great  emphasis  to 
"establish  a  college"  for  the  education  of  our  children  and  young 
men,  as  one  of  the  most  powerful  and  successful  means  of  attain- 
ing the  rights  and  dignity  of  American  citizens.*  We  trusted  then 
that  such  wholesome  advice,  coming  from  one  so  high  in  office,  so 
experienced  in  age,  so  far-reaching  in  knowledge,  and  so  virtuous 
in  character,  would  make  a  deep  and  lasting  impression  on  our 
minds,  and  after  the  lapse  of  many  years  we  feel  that  such  was  the 
case.  He  was  followed  by  one  of  the  Congregational  clergymen, 
whose  eloquent  speech,  flowing  from  a  generous  soul,  kindled 
in  our  bosoms  such  a  flame  of  Christian  affection  and  fraternal 
sympathy  as  made  us  feel  that  we  are  indeed  the  children  of  one 
Father,  the  heirs  of  the  same  heavenly  inheritance,  and  that 
neither  complexional  distinction  nor  sectarian  predilections  can 
sever  those  that  have  been  washed  in  the  blood  of  the  same 
Saviour,  and  whose  hopes  are  in  the  same  Gospel. 

At  Harrisburg  we  met  in  peace,  at  Pittsburg  we  parted  in  love, 
hoping  that  in  the  morning  of  the  resurrection  we  would  all  be 
united  in  the  same  heaven  to  join  in  the  same  song  of  praise  to 
the  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Spirit.  It  was  thus  auspiciously  that 
we  were  to  enter  upon  the  duties  devolving  upon  us  in  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  of  1844,  and  we  have  already  Seen  how  this  same 
spirit  of  Christian  union  pervaded  the  city  of  Pittsburg  during 
our  deliberations,  and  made  it  possible  to  feel  that  God  would 
crown  with  his  blessings  all  that  was  done  and  said  at  that  mem- 
orable session. 

What  was  done  in  the  Annual  Conference  in  this  year  can  be 
told  in  a  few  words.  The  Baltimore  churches  met  in  the  city  of 
Washington  on  the  8th  of  June,  and  continued  their  delib- 
erations for  ten  days.  All  the  Bishops  were  present.  Rt. 
Rev.  Morris  Brown  opened  the  Conference  with  an  impres- 
sive address.    Brother  Samuel  Watts  wras  received  on  probation 

*  This  gentleman  was  the  President  or  Superintendent  of  the  Public 
Works  of  Pennsylvania. 


176 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


into  the  itinerant  ranks,  and  Samuel  Wilmore  into  the  local. 
Henry  Waters.  William  Gaines  and  Adam  S.  Driver  were  received 
into  full  connection,  and  John  L.  Armstrong  was  ordained  an 
elder.  Brother  William  Gaines  was  ordained  a  deacon  before  he 
had  finished  his  probation.  The  rule  of  discipline  was  suspended 
in  his  case  for  the  following  reasons:  The  church  at  Frederick- 
town.  Md.j  was  destitute  of  an  ordained  minister,  and  as  the  laws 
of  that  section  of  the  country  rendered  it  difficult  to  change 
minister-  according  to  our  Discipline,  and  in  view  of  the  fact 
that  Brother  Gaines  had  secured  the  confidence  of  the  white 
community,  therefore  it  was  deemed  proper  to  set  him  apart  for 
that  office. 

The  churches  of  Carlisle  prayed  Conference  to  alter  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  Chambersburg  Circuit  so  as  to  make  it  consist  in  the 
future  of  Chambersburg,  Carlisle,  Yellow  Beaches  and  Messers- 
burg,  and  that  but  one  preacher  be  sent  them  for  this  year's  ser- 
vice, which  was  granted.  Another  petition  prayed  for  the 
division  of  the  Harrisburg  Circuit,  and  the  division  was  made  as 
follows:  The  Harrisburg  Circuit  was  made  to  embrace  Harris- 
burg, Mount  Joy,  Marietta,  Columbia  and  Wrightsville,  while 
Lancaster,  Pemingtonville,  the  Valley,  Britton,  Canastogen  and 
Russellville  were  constructed  into  the  Lancaster  Circuit.  A  mis- 
sionary society  for  the  Baltimore  District  was  organized  as  an 
auxiliary  to  the  Parent,  Home  and  Foreign  Society,  ami  as  a  step 
toward  the  higher  education.  Rev.  H.  C.  Turner  was  author- 
ized to  establish  a  high  school  in  the  city  of  Baltimore. 

The  statistics  show  the  existence  at  that  period  of  nine  Sunday- 
schools,  with  eight  hundred  and  sixty-nine  scholars;  three  com- 
mon schools,  with  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  pupils;  one 
educational  society;  one  church  library  attached  to  Israel  Church, 
in  Washington  D.  C,  and  containing  forty-five  volumes;  also 
three  temperance  societies,  with  one  thousand  and  five  members. 

Numbered  among  the  dead  was  Rev.  William  Nichols.  He 
was  one  of  the  persons  who  aided  the  martyred  Torry  in  cover- 
ing the  escape  of  many  slaves  from  the  District  of  Columbia  to 
their  asylum  in  Canada  West.  Soon  after  the  arrest  of  Torry  he 
accidentally  learned  that  he  was  known  to  be  in  connection  with 
him,  ami  it  is  supposed  the  fear  of  being  arrested  was  so  great  as 
to  induce  the  paralysis  which  lead  to  his  rather  sudden  death  on 
the  20th  of  September,  1843.  He  was  a  man  of  more  than  ordi- 
nary intelligence,  and  was  firmly  opposed  to  the  extravagant  zeal 


Opening  of  a  New  Era.  177 


and  rude  manner  which  distinguished  so  many  of'the  Leading 
men  of  our  denomination  in  the  city  of  Washington,  1).  C. ;  for 
in  that  early  period  the  men  and  women  who  made  the  most 
and  the  greatest  noise,  and  the  most  extravagant  gesticulations, 
were  regarded  as  the  greatest  Christians.  Brother  Samuel  Dick- 
erson  was  another  who  departed  this  life  this  year. 

Four  days  after  the  rise  of  the  Baltimore  Conference,  that  of 
the  Philadelphia  District  was  convened  in  the  city  of  Philadel- 
phia, ■ I  line  22d.  The  important  transactions  were  few.  Alexa  n- 
der Davis  was  admitted  on  probation  as  a  local  preacher,  and 
Brother  Henry  Davis  as  an  itinerant.  Following  the  example  of 
the  Baltimore  Conference,  the  Rev.  David  Ware  was  authorized 
to  establish  a  high  school  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  Little 
Wesley,  or  Hurst  Street  Church,  was  converted  into  a  station. 
Rev.  Walter  Proctor  was  appointed  a  home  missionary,  and  Rev. 
Stephen  Smith  a  foreign  one.*  The  Conference  was  called  upon 
to  record  the  deaths  of  two  of  its  strong  men  and  earliest  labor- 
ers— Rev.  Richard  Williams  and  Rev.  Joseph  Cox.  The  former 
was  one  of  the  earliest  itinerants — faithful  among  the  faithless. 
Many  entered  the  itinerant  ranks  about  the  same  time  who  were 
like  stumbling  horses,  for  they  were  always  falling  down  with 
their  burdens  on  their  backs;  others  fell  to  rise  no  more,  despis- 
ing themselves  and  disgracing  the  whole  Connection.  But  this 
minister  of  God  was  upright  and  faultless  in  his  moral  character, 
and,  always  willing  to  obey  the  orders  of  his  superior  in  office, 
he  performed  some  of  the  most  painful,  laborious  and  important 
missions  of  the  itinerant  service.  He  was  the  first  regularly 
ordained  and  accredited  elder  who,  amid  great  privations,  carried 
the  banners  of  the  African  Methodist  Church  and  planted  them 
on  the  shores  of  Canada  and  Western  New  York.  During  this 
long  and  faithful  service  of  about  twenty-seven  or  twenty-eight 
years  he  held  some  of  the  most  important  stations  in  the  gift  of 
the  Connection.  As  early  as  1818  we  find  him  in  the  pastorate 
of  Baltimore,  and  in  1840-41  we  find  him  associated  with  Bishop 
Brown  as  the  joint  pastor  of  Bethel,  in  Philadelphia.  When  he 
died  it  was  in  favor  with  God,  and  presenting  a_  spotless  charac- 
ter to  the  world.  Brother  Cox  was  a  man  of  more  than  ordinary 
talents.  His  mind  was  vigorous  and  capable  of  grappling  with 
and  mastering  any  subject  to  which  he  determined  to  devote  his 

*  Neither  the  high  school  nor  this  missionary  work  was  made  an  actuality. 
12 


178 


History  of  the  A,  M.  E.  Church. 


attention.  One  who  knew  him  well  says  of  his  analytical  pow- 
ers, that  when  he  heard  Joseph  Cox  in  the  pulpit  he  was  reminded 
of  the  corn-mills  of  South  Carolina,  out  of  whose  hoppers  the 
grain  comes  fine  as  powder.  Though  not  educated,  in  the  popu- 
lar sense  of  the  term,  yet  he  had  greatly  enriched  his  mind  by 
various  reading  and  patient  reflection.  As  for  native  eloquence, 
he  had  no  superior  in  his  day.  Possessed  of  a  splendid  and 
powerful  pair  of  lungs,  his  voice  was  strong,  round  and  full,  and 
when  he  became  inspired  with  his  subject  he  employed  its  won- 
derful intonations  with  the  happiest  effect.  With  its  power  he 
repeatedly  moved  a  congregation  of  two  thousand  souls;  and 
this  was  not  the  effect  of  ranting,  but  the  legitimate  result  of  a 
soul  inspired  with  the  sublimity  and  importance  of  the  great 
theme  of  salvation,  and  possessed  of  an  almost  superhuman 
power  to  give  utterance  to  the  holy,  burning,  heavenly  emotions 
that  swelled  it.  Both  the  active  Bishops  presided  at  this  Confer- 
ence. Bishop  Morris  Brown  presided  alone  at  that  of  the  New 
York  District,  which  assembled  fifteen  days  after  the  close  of 
the  Philadelphia,  as  Bishop  Quinn  had  left  for  the  West.  An- 
thony Treadwell  was  ordained  a  deacon,  and  Brothers  Henry 
Johnson  and  Isaac  Parker  were  ordained  elders  in  the  Church  of 
God.  The  book  committee  was  authorized  to  examine  and  publish 
the  biographical  document  of  Jarena  Lee,  "  if  they  should  approve 
of  it  and  think  it  proper  to  do  so."  It  was  the  same  document  that 
was  referred  to  them  by  the  General  Conference.  An  effort  was 
also  made  here  to  establish  a  high  school  within  the  bounds  of 
this  district  for  the  " accommodation  of  the  local  preachers  in  the 
study  of  grammar  and  other  branches  of  useful  knowledge." 
These  items  indicate  all  the  important  transactions  that  took 
place. 

About  three  weeks  and  six  days  after  the  close  of  the  New 
York  Conference,  the  Canadian  Conference  assembled  in  To- 
ronto, with  Bishop  Brown  presiding,  Bishop  Quinn  being  still 
at  the  West.  Peter  Curtis,  James  Holly,  Nelson  Contee  and 
Peter  Smith  were  admitted  on  probation,  with  James  Walker 
into  full  connection.    William  Edwards  and  Josiah  Henson* 

*This  Josiah  Henson  was  the  original  "  Uncle  Tom"  of  Mrs.  Harriet 
Beecher  Stowe's  thrilling  volume  against  American  slavery,  and  had  cause, 
with  millions  of  his  kinsmen  according  to  the  flesh,  to  rejoice  in  its  over- 
throw by  the  strong  arm  of  God,  who  has  promised  to  break  in  pieces 
the  oppressor." 


Opening  of  a  New  Era, 


17(.) 


were  ordained  elders,  while  Edward  Gant,  Peter  Smith  and 
Jacob  Dorsey  were  ordained  deacons  in  the  ( Ihurch.  Alexander 
Helmsley  was  located.  Pleasant  Underwood,  from  the  Ohio 
Conference,  was,  by  resolution,  admitted  into  this.  Another 
effort  was  made  to  have  the  churches  closed  at  a  suitable  hour  of 
aight.  There  is  no  doubt  in  the  minds  of  the  thoughtful  ones 
that  late  meetings,  continued  for  several  weeks  iii  succes- 
sion, are  damaging  to  the  intellect,  damaging  to  the  pecuniary 
interests  of  the  individuals  who  persist  in  them,  and  to  the 
pecuniary  interests  of  the  ehurch  in  which  they  are  fostered. 
The  waste  of  vital  power  in  the  bodies  of  such  ''midnight  reli- 
gionists," to  say  nothing  of  the  waste  of  fuel  and  lights,  greatly 
outweighs  the  fancied  benefits  realized,  and  ought  to  constrain 
every  considerate  man  and  woman  to  enter  a  solemn  protest 
against  the  unreasonable  and  unchristian  custom.  But  it  is  true 
that  the  pastors  are  responsible  for  both  the  usage  and  the  dam- 
aging results.  "  Like  priest,  like  people."  A  stupid  pastorate 
will  produce  a  stupid  flock;  a  fanatical  pastor,  a  fanatical  flock; 
and  the  converse  of  this  declaration  is  equally  true. 

Near  the  close  of  the  Canada  Conference  Bishop  Brown  was 
attacked  by  a  stroke  of  paralysis,  and  after  its  close  was  conveyed 
to  his  residence  in  Philadelphia  by  Rev.  Noah  C.  Cannon,  who 
had  succeeded  him  as  chairman  pro  tern,  of  the  Conference.  This 
was  the  last  Canadian  Conference  that  the  Bishop  ever  attended. 

After  the  rise  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference  Bishop  Quinn 
proceeded  to  the  West,  with  a  view  to  hold  the  Conferences  in 
those  regions.  He  set  out  in  his  own  private  carriage  for  Terre 
Haute,  at  which  place  the  Annual  Conference  of  that  district  was 
to  convene  on  the  29th  of  August.  When  about  twenty  miles 
distant  some  part  of  the  harness  broke,  and  the  horse,  naturally 
fiery,  took  fright  and  ran  away.  The  Bishop  held  him  until 
the  reins  gave  way,  and  the  front  of  the  carriage  being  al- 
ready broken,  he  fell  out,  and  as  he  still  clung  to  the  broken 
rein,  the  horse  dragged  him  some  two  hundred  yards,  when  the 
animal  freed  himself  from  the  Bishop's  control  and  fled,  break- 
ing the  carriage  into  pieces.  The  Bishop  was  severely  bruised  on 
the  left  side  and  breast,  and  one  of  his  arms  was  fractured. 
Though  almost  insensible  when  raised  from  the  ground,  his  pow- 
erful and  vigorous  constitution,  as  an  auxiliary  to  the  best  medi- 
cal skill,  enabled  him  to  open  the  Conference  two  days  later. 

In  the  Indiana  District  this  year  Aaron  M.  Parker,  Green  Har- 


180 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


rison,  Philip  Ward,  Cyrus  Woods,  Lee  and  Lewis  Johnson 

were  placed  on  probation.  James  Curtis,  Joshua  Dunlap,  iEneas 
Mcintosh,  Israel  Cole  and  Byrd  Parker  were  received  into  full 
connection.  Thomas  Ailsworth,  iEneas  Mcintosh,  James  Curtis, 
Benjamin  Hill  and  Henry  Travan  were  ordained  elders  in  the 
Church  of  God.  Application  was  made  from  the  School  Conven- 
tion to  confer  with  Conference  relative  to  the  best  means  for  the 
establishment  of  a  general  system  of  education  in  the  state  of 
Indiana.*  A  committee  was  appointed,  which  reported  favor- 
ably upon  the  plan  proposed,  with  some  slight  alterations  in  it. 
In  connection  with  the  subject  of  education,  it  was  made  the 
duty  of  the  preachers  to  deliver  a  monthly  address  upon  that 
subject.  Rev.  George  W.  Johnson  was  elected  district  book 
steward,  and  the  Church  Magazine  was  recommended  to  the  pat- 
ronage of  our  people.  As  early  as  1844  the  subject  of  the  pur- 
chase of  a  homestead  for  a  Bishop  came  before  the  churches  for 
consideration. f  It  was  at  this  Conference  that  a  delegate  was 
appointed  to  the  Ohio  Conference  to  consult  with  it  in  regard  to 
providing  a  homestead  for  Bishop  Quinn,  to  be  located  some- 
where in  the  West. 

The  Ohio  churches  assembled  at  Columbus  on  the  17th  of 
September.  Bishop  Quinn  presided  alone,  as  Bishop  Brown 
was  still  ill.  Henderson  Gillespie,  Eli  Wilkens  and  Peter  Jones 
were  received  on  probation,  and  William  Newman  and  Thomas 
Woodson  into  full  connection.  Thomas  Woodson,  Matthew  T. 
Newsom  and  Simon  Ratcliff  were  ordained  elders,  and  William 
Newman  and  Solomon  H.  Thompson,  deacons.  It  was  at 
this  Conference  that  Brother  Newsom  proposed  the  idea  of 
selecting  a  suitable  location  for  a  seminary  to  educate  young 
men  for  the  ministry.  A  committee  was  appointed  to  effect  this 
noble  object,  with  power  to  make  the  selection  somewhere  in  the 
state  of  Michigan.  This  last  was  the  only  business  of  impor- 
tance that  the  Ohio  churches  transacted  at  this  session.  This 

:i  Though  there  is  no  documentary  evidence  of  the  fact,  it  is  said  that 
there  was  a  convention  of  colored  persons  held  in  the  West  about  this  time 
to  promote  the  cause  of  education,  and  that  the  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark  was  the 
appointed  agent  of  it. 

tThe  resolutions  were  never  executed,  and  the  Bishop  was  left  to  find  a 
home  for  himself,  which  he  did  in  Richmond,  Indiana.  The  Ohio  Confer- 
ence determined  to  fix  the  Bishop's  residence  in  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  but  as  we 
have  said,  no  place  was  settled  upon. 


Opening  of  a  New  Era. 


Conference  was  the  last  held  in  the  year  1 844,  and  the  general 
outlook  for  the  progress  of  the  Church  in  educational  matters 
was  more  cheering  from  that  period.  Its  literature  during  that 
year,  as  found  in  the  pages  of  the  magazine,  may  be  reduced  to 
four  subjects — biographical,  ministerial  support,  revivals  and  edu- 
cational. Upon  the  last  named  subject  the  contributors  to  its 
columns  were  Rev.  John  M.  Brown,  from  Oberlin,  where  he  was 
then  a  student;  Henry  W.  Simmons,  of  *  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia; Mr.  Abram  Fields,  of  Philadelphia;  and  Rev.  Daniel  A. 
Payne,  who  contributed  essays  on  the  education  of  the  ministry. 
These  were  all  vigorous  appeals  for  more  learning  in  our  midst, 
and  at  the  same  time  indicative  of  the  minds  among  us  already 
influenced  by  that  great  lever  in  the  uplifting  of  any  nation  or 
race.  But  the  causes  of  a  revolution  in  the  character  of  our  min- 
istry had  just  begun  to  be  planted  like  a  few  seeds  in  the  ground, 
and  they  required  time  to  germinate,  then  to  vegetate,  and  after- 
wards to  bring  forth  fruit  in  the  ripened  revolution.  The  Afri- 
can Methodist  Episcopal  Church  has  been  progressing  steadily 
from  the  time  that  the  General  Conference  of  1844  acted  in  favor 
of  an  educated  ministry. 

The  biographical  sketches  of  this  period  were  more  numerous 
than  those  of  any  previous  year,  some  of  which  were  very  inter- 
esting, commemorating,  as  they  did,  some  of  the  workers  in  the 
vineyard  of  the  Lord.  Among  them  is  one  upon  the  wife  of 
Rev.  H.  C.  Turner,  himself  one  of  the  strong  men  of  the  Con- 
nection. Of  her,  the  Rev.  Willis  Nazery  says:  "Her  life  was 
truly  pious,  and  such  as  became  a  disciple  of  the  Lord." 

Good  news  is  also  sent  from  Canada  by  the  Rev.  George  Weir, 
who  says  that,  despite  the  threatened  division  of  the  Church  at 
St.  Catherine's,  the  faithful  few  had  labored  on  with  the  glorious 
result  that  a  great  outpouring  of  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  had  taken 
place  in  the  latter  part  of  the  previous  December,  and  that  at 
this  time  "the  peace  and  good  feeling  and  Christian  love  that 
now  live  in  the  Society  is  truly  pleasant  to  witness."  Spirited 
accounts  of  the  revivals  which  had  taken  place  in  Washington, 
D.  C.j  and  in  Baltimore,  form  also  a  part  of  the  literary  efforts  of 
the  year. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


LINES  OF  PROGRESS  IN  1845. 


A  Flourishing  Condition  in  Schools  and  Temperance  Societies — First  Ac- 
tive Effort  in  Regard  to  a  Connectional  School— Measures  for  a  School 
East  of  the  Alleghenies— Comprehensive  Report  from  the  Book  Concern 
— Deplorable  State  of  Affairs— Ignorance  Among  the  Colored  People 
Regarding  the  Book  Concern — Importance  of  an  Enlightened  Ministry 
Evident— A  Period  of  Light  Dawning. 


HIRTY-SEVEN   ministers  represented  the  Baltimore 


churches  as  they  assembled  in  Conference  in  the  Monu- 


mental City  on  the  26th  of  May,  1845.  Among  them  were 
eleven  licentiates,  thirteen  deacons,  ten  ciders  and  three  Bishops. 
The  secretaries  were  Rev.  Levin  Lee  and  Samuel  Watts.  To  these 
servants  Bishop  Brown  delivered  a  feeling  address,  referring  to  his 
own  afflicted  condition,  and  expressing  the  thought  that  he  might 
not  be  with  the  body  again.  The  question  of  the  privileges  and 
rights  of  members  of  the  Conference,  either  itinerant  or  local, 
who  are  on  probation,  and  those  who  are  in  full  membership,  was 
propounded  for  settlement  as  to  whether  any  difference  existed, 
but  the  house  was  decided  by  the  Bishop  as  the  body  to  act  in 
the  matter,  according  to  the  usual  custom.  The  spirit  and 
movement  of  the  ministers  on  the  educational  question  at  this 
meeting  is  indicated  by  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions : 

Whereas,  The  sacred  cause  of  education  is  of  such  vital  importance  to 
the  interest  of  the  Church  in  particular,  and  to  the  world  in  general,  that 
instead  of  being  contented  with  what  little  we  have  done,  we  feel  it  our 
duty  to  make  new  and  greater  efforts  to  advance  its  cause  among  us  in 
such  a  way  as  will  result  in  a  general  diffusion  of  its  blessings  among  our 
benighted  race ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  we  recommend  to  our  ministers  and  people  the  im- 
portance of  holding  a  general  Convention  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  on 
the  30th  day  of  October  next,  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a  literary  institu- 
tion, and  devising  such  other  measures  as  will  place  the  cauFe  of  education 
among  us  on  a  solid  and  lasting  foundation,  so  that  all  our  people,  in  a 
greater  or  less  degree,  may  hereafter  enjoy  its  benign  influence. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  there  be  central  committees  formed  for  the  purpose  of 
carrying  into  effect  the  object  embraced  in  the  first  resolution,  and  that 
this  committee  shall  have  the  power  to  appoint  sub-committees  in  other 


(182) 


Lines  of  Progress  in  L846\  L83 

places,  for  the  purpose  of  securing  a  general  attendance  of  all  persons  of 
influence  and  means  among  ns. 

lit  wired,  3d.  That  this  committee  shall  consist  of  seven  members  of  our 
Church,  viz.  :  four  of  the  itinerant  preachers  and  three  of  the  laity. 

Resolved,  4th.  That  a  copy  of  this  preamble  and  resolutions  be  sent  to 
each  Annual  Conference,  with  a  respectful  request  for  their  adoption. 

The  names  appended  to  this  document  as  members  of  the 
"Central  Committee"  were  Daniel  A.  Payne,  Henry  C.  Turner, 
Thomas  \V.  Henry,  Adam  S.  Driver,  James  A.  Shorter,  John 
Henson  and  Daniel  W.  Moore. 

The  Sabbath-schools,  temperance  societies  and  common  schools 
were  all  in  a  nourishing  condition.  In  Washington  City,  Israel 
Church  had  established  a  circulating  library  among  its  members. 
One  educational  society  to  assist  young  men  in  preparing  for  the 
ministry,  together  with  two  temperance  societies  and  a  mission- 
ary society,  auxiliary  to  the  "  Parent,"  were  among  the  institu- 
tions of  that  date  in  the  limits  of  this  Conference.  Baltimore, 
at  that  time  under  the  pastorate  of  Rev.  H.  C.  Turner,  had  a 
flourishing  Sunday-school  of  three  hundred  and  eighteen  schol- 
ars, one  common  school  and  a  missionary  society. 

Brothers  Christopher  Jones  and  Aquila  Scott  were  admitted 
into  the  ranks  of  the  local  ministry,  and  Brother  Samuel  Wil- 
more  into  the  itinerant. 

The  Philadelphia  ministers,  fifty-six  in  number,  held  the 
Philadelphia  Conference  in  that  city.  It  was  Bishop  Quinn 
who  delivered  the  annual  address  at  this  Conference.  Brothers 
I.  Hollan,  J.  P.  B.  Eddy,  Shadrack  Blackstone,  J.  W.  Stokes  and 
William  Jones  were  added  to  the  Conference  as  probationers. 
Alexander  Wayman,  Aaron  Johnson,  Henderson  Davis  and  A.  C. 
Crippen  were  received  into  full  connection.  A.  Wayman  and 
H.  Davis  were  ordained  deacons. 

It  will  be  recollected  that  Bishop  Brown  had  been  struck  with 
paralysis  while  he  was  presiding  at  the  Canadian  Conference  of 
1844,  and  from  thence  he  became  increasingly  feeble,  losing  the 
power  of  speech  as  well  as  that  of  locomotion,  so  that  the  pres- 
ent Conference  of  the  Philadelphia  District  felt  compelled,  for 
his  own  ease  and  comfort  as  well  as  for  the  general  interest  of  the 
Connection,  to  declare  him  "incompetent  to  travel  and  exercise 
his  episcopal  office  in  the  Church;"  in  other  words,  to  place  him 
in  superannuated  relations  to  it.  They  also  declared  it  their 
opinion  that  he  ought  to  receive  annually  while  in  that  state  the 


184 


Hhtory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sum  of  two  hundred  dollars,  and  pledged  themselves  to  raise 
annually  one  hundred  of  that  amount,  and  solicited  the  Balti- 
more and  New  York  Districts  to  eo-operate  in  raising  the  balance. 
Tin  y  also  recommended  "  all  the  preachers  in  the  Philadelphia 
District  to  take  collections  in  their  several  circuits  and  stations 
to  assist  in  carrying  out  this  object."  Sincere  regret  was  expressed 
that  the  body  felt  compelled  to  this  necessity  by  an  over-ruling 
Providence  "  which  deprives  us  of  the  long  and  useful  labors  of  our 
much  esteemed  and  truly  beloved  father  in  God,  Bishop  Brown."  * 

It  was  on  the  25th  of  June  that  the  New  York  churches  con- 
vened for  the  annual  transaction  of  their  affairs.  Their  meeting 
was  held  in  New  York  City,  and.  though  exceedingly  feeble,  the 
venerable  Bishop  Brown  presided  alone  during  the  first  six  days, 
at  the  end  of  which  time  Bishop  Quinn  arrived  and  took  his 
place  as  president.  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark  and  Rev.  George  Hogarth 
were  secretaries.  But  three  local  men  and  one  itinerant  were 
added  to  the  Conference.  Four  deacons  were  ordained,  in  the 
persons  of  E.  C.  Africanus,  James  Hyate,  X.  C.  B.  Thomas  and 
L.  Tilman.  Before  the  brethren  closed  their  deliberations  they 
passed  resolutions  to  "use  every  laudable  endeavor  to  encourage 
our  young  men  to  obtain  a  useful  education."  Brother  Hercules 
Schureman,  the  grandfather  of  that  gifted  and  useful  man.  the 
Rev.  Wm.  1).  W.  Schureman,  was  one  of  the  two  ministers  called 
to  their  reward  this  year.  He  was  nearly  one  hundred  years  of 
age.  Charles  Spicer  was  the  other,  and  the  magazine  of  that 
year  contains  a  sketch  of  him  from  the  pen  of  Brother  C.  Burch. 

The  Indiana  churches  held  their  Annual  Conference  this  year 
in  Indianapolis,  with  Bishop  Quinn  presiding  alone,  and  Brother 
Mcintosh  as  the  secretary.  Three  were  added  to  the  ministry — 
Baker  Brown.  General  Footle  and  Ishman  Thurman — the  first 
as  an  itinerant,  the  two  latter  as  local  preachers.  Henry  Cole 
was  received  into  full  connection,  but  the  ranks  of  the  itinerancy 
were  weakened  by  the  location  of  Revs.  Byrd  Parker  and  Benja- 
min Hill.  The  items  of  interest  are  few,  as,  aside  from  the 
reports  of  the  existence  of  seven  common  schools  and  eight 
Sunday-schools,  and  the  above  points,  the  minutes  are  barren. 

*  There  is  no  question  but  that  the  brethren  felt  themselves  justified  in 
their  act  by  the  inability  of  the  Bishop,  but  it  seenrfe  questionable  whether 
this  act  of  an  Annual  Conference  was  legal.  The  General  Conference  is 
the  only  power  that  can  depose  a  Bishop  from  office  on  any  account, 
especially  for  a  reason  that  does  not  imply  an  immorality. 


Lines  of  Progress  in  1845. 


185 


Again  we  find  ourselves  at  St.  Catherine's,  Canada  West,  to 
note  the  gathering  of  the  Canadian  churches.  Thai  Conference 
opened  on  the  13th  of  September  and  closed  on  the  17th.  Rev. 
X.  C.  W.  Cannon  was  voted  into  the  chair,  as  both  of  the  Bishops 
were  absent,  and  George  Weir  and  C.  T.  Williamson  were  made 
secretaries.  C.  1>.  Williamson,  Adam  S.  Lewis,  Henry  Bull, 
Henry  Stephens.  Lewis  S.  Lewis  and  James  Walker  were  the  five 
admitted  to  the  Conference,  the  Latter  as  an  itinerant ;  but,  apaii 
from  another  endeavor  to  correct  the  pernicious  habit  of  Late  meet- 
ings, there  is  nothing  more  to  add  concerning  this  Conference. 

The  Ohio  churches  were  the  next  to  convene  in  Columbus,  on 
the  ISth  of  October.  Four  ministers  were  added  to  the  itinerant 
service — .John  I'.  Woodson,  Edward  Davis.  William  Heron  and 
Henderson  Gillespie.  -lames  Turpine  and  Campbell  Maxwell 
were  ordained  local  deacons,  and  Edward  Davis  a  traveling 
deacon,  while  S.  H.  P.  Thompson  and  William  Newman  were 
ordained  elders.  The  Urtjana  Circuit  was  divided  into  two 
parts  at  this  Conference:  the  one  consisted  of  Urbana,  embra- 
cing Springfield,  Urbana,  London,  Goshen,  Logan,  Machadrack 
and  Larrimer,  Muddy  Creek;  while  the  other,  Carthagena, 
included  Troy,  Carthagena,  Van  Wert,  Fort  Wayne  and  Eel 
River.  Conference  also  received  into  the  Connection  a  congrega- 
tion in  Delaware,  0.,  and  one  each  in  Athens,  Hocking  and 
Heaver.  But  its  action  on  the  subject  of  education  was  the  mosl 
important  of  all.  A  committee  had  been  appointed  at  the  Last 
session,  in  1844,  and  when  now  called  upon  to  report,  gave  the 
following,  which  was  to  be  the  basis,  as  far  as  actual  action 
went,  of  the  schools  of  the  Connection  found  in  existence  nearly 
half  a  century  later  : 

We,  your  committee  appointed  by  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  met  in  the  city  of  Columbus,  Sep- 
tember 17th,  1844,  to  select  a  tract  of  land  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  a 
seminary  of  learning,  on  the  manual  labor  plan,  for  the  instruction  of  the 
youths  among  us  in  the  various  branches  of  literature,  science,  agriculture 
and  mechanic  arts,  and  also  for  those  young  men  who  may  desire  to  pre- 
pare for  the  ministry.  Being  destitute  of  means  to  pay  our  traveling  ex- 
penses to  the  state  of  Michigan  to  seek  its  location,  we  have  selected  one 
in  Franklin  County,  state  of  Ohio,  twelve  miles  west  of  Columbus,  and 
two  miles  north  of  the  National  Road,  containing  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-two acres  of  land,  which  can  be  purchased  for  $1,720,  to  be  paid  in 
installments.  M.  T.  Newsum,  ) 


Lewis  Adams, 
Thomas  Lawrence, 


186 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Another  tract  of  land  was  reported  by  Brother  Lawrence,  cov- 
ered with  wood,  and  without  any  improvements.  A  committee 
was  appointed  to  execute  the  same.  They  did  so,  and  then 
recommended  the  purchase  of  the  first  tract.  A  traveling  agent 
had  been  appointed  to  raise  moneys  to  pay  for  this  property,  in 
the  person  of  Major  J.  Wilkerson,  who  agreed  to  serve  the  Con- 
ference for  one-third  of  all  that  he  might  collect.  A  report  of 
$2,537  for  that  purpose  was  encouraging.  The  next  thing  that 
the  Conference  deemed  necessary  was  a  committee  to  draft  a 
constitution  fortius  school  in  embryo,  its  government,  etc.  They 
produced  the  following: 

PREAMBLE  AND  CONSTITUTION. 

PREAMBLE. 

Whereas,  We  have  long  viewed  with  the  deepest  solicitude  the  impor- 
tance of  providing  for  the  instruction  of  the  rising  generation  among  us  ;  and 
Whereas,  There  is  no  institution  accessible  to  our  youth  that  meets  our 
views  of  their  wants;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  Annual  Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church,  which  met  in  the  city  of  Columbus,  state  of  Ohio,  October 
24th,  1845,  feeling  a  deep  interest  in  the  moral  and  literary-improvement 
of  our  youth,  do  devise  a  plan  for  the  establishment  of  a  seminary  of 
learning  for  the  dissemination  of  useful  knowledge  among  us,  on  the  man- 
ual labor  system,  for  those  who  purpose  entering  into  the  ministry,  and 
all  others  who  may  deem  it  to  their  interest  to  apply  themselves  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  their  minds  in  those  branches  of  science  that  may  be  taught 
therein. 

CONSTITUTION. 

Article  1.  This  Seminary  shall  be  known  and  styled  "The  Union  Semi- 
nary of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,"  subject  to  the  Ohio 
Annual  Conference. 

Art.  2.  The  object  of  this  Seminary  shall  be  the  education  of  those 
young  men  who  purpose  entering  into  the  ministry,  and  the  improvement 
of  our  youth  generally,  both  male  and  female,  by  instructing  them  in  lit- 
erature, science,  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts. 

Art.  3.  The  condition  of  admission  into  the  Seminary  shall  be  as  the 
by-laws  may  from  time  to  time  prescribe. 

Art.  4.  The  officers  of  the  Seminary  shall  be  a  principal,  a  board  of 
thirteen  managers,  nine  trustees,  a  secretary  and  treasurer. 

Art.  5.  The  officers  of  the  Seminary  shall  hold  their  office  for  the  term 
of  one  Conference  year,  by  complying  with  the  rules  laid  down  in  the  by- 
laws for  their  government;  but  in  case  of  failure  to  choose  officers  at  the 
stated  time,  those  in  office  shall  continue  till  others  are  chosen  by  the  An- 
nual Conference. 

Art.  6.    The  times  of  meeting,  the  times  and  the  manner  of  choosing 


Inixes  of  Progress  in  1845. 


187 


officers,  their  power  and  duties,  fche  liabilities  of  its  members,  the  causes 
that  shall  justify  dismembership,  and  generally  the  details  of  its  organiza- 
tion shall  be  prescribed  by  by-laws. 

Art.  7.  The  funds  of  the  institution  shall  be  derived  from  contribu- 
tions, donations,  legacies,  scholarships,  etc.,  and  after  the  expenses  shall  be 
defrayed,  any  surplus  that  may  be,  shall  not  be  appropriated  to  any  other 
use  or  purpose  than  to  aid  the  itinerant,  superannuated  and  supernu- 
merary preachers  and  Bishops  belonging  to  this  district. 

Provided,  nevertheless,  That  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  members  of  the 
Annual  Conference,  at  its  session,  shall  be  sufficient  to  alter  or  amend  any 
of  the  above  restrictions,  except  those  clauses  that  would  destroy  the  true 
interest  and  meaning  of  said  institution,  which  shall  not  be  altered. 

The  seventh  article  overlooked  the  fact  that  an  institution  of 
learning  1ms  never  any  surplus  for  purposes  outside  of  itself,  and 
foreign  to  its  aim;  also  that  with  the  growth  of  an  institution  of 
learning  there  is  always  a  multiplication  of  wants  that  must  he 
supplied.  And,  therefore,  instead  of  being  able  to  give  away  its 
funds  to  objects  foreign  to  the  cause  of  education,  it  must  always 
l»e  soliciting  funds  to  widen  its  usefulness  and  perpetuate  its  ex- 
istence. 

But  the  cause  of  education  was  on  the  increase.  It  has  already 
been  shown  that  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference,  at  its  session 
in  the  spring  of  this  year,  passed  resolutions  in  favor  of  hold- 
ing a  General  Convention  to  consider  the  interest  of  education, 
appointed  a  central  committee  for  the  execution  of  this  laudable 
purpose,  and  ordered  a  copy  of  the  resolutions  to  be  sent  to  all 
the  Conferences  for  their  adoption.  The  time  for  holding  it  was 
fixed  for  the  30th  of  October.  This  committee  was  faithful  in 
the  execution  of  the  work  assigned  to  it.  On  the  arrival  of 
that  day  eighty-six  delegates  from  the  Baltimore,  Philadel- 
phia and  New  York  Conferences,  made  their  appearance  at 
the  appointed  place,  viz.:  Bethel  Church,  in  the  city  of  Phila- 
delphia. By  virtue  of  his  office  as  chairman  of  the  central  com- 
mittee, D.  A.  Payne  called  the  Convention  to  order.  Bishop 
Brown  was  chosen  its  president,  and  Revs.  J.  Beulah,  John 
I  toggs,  •John  Cornish,  Israel  Scott,  William  Davis  and  Henry 
Davis  were  made  vice-presidents.  The  secretaries  were  Alex- 
ander Wayman  and  Joshua  Woodlin.  There  was  a  business 
committee,  consisting  of  D.  A.  Payne,  M.  M.  Clark,  David  Ware, 
A.  Fields,  D.  W.  Moore,  J.  T.  Costin  and  J.  J.  G.  Bias.  In  the 
afternoon  session  of  the  first  day  this  committee  reported  the 
constitution  of  a  parent  society  to  promote  the  cause  of  educa- 


188 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


tion.  Its  preamble  and  fifth  article  will  show  the  design  and 
character  of  this  constitution,  as  well  as  the  institution  it  was 
adapted  to  create  and  perpetuate  : 

PREAMBLE. 

Whereas,  The  cause  of  education  is  of  such  vital  importance  to  the  in- 
terest of  the  Church  in  particular,  and  the  work  generally,  that  instead  of 
being  content  with  what  little  we  have  done,  we  feel  it  our  bounden  duty 
to  make  new  and  greater  efforts  to  advance  it  in  such  a  way  as  will  result 
in  the  general  diffusion  of  its  blessings  .amongst  our  benighted  race; 
therefore, 

Resolved,  That  inasmuch  as  there  is  being  established  a  high  school"  in 
the  western  section  of  the  Connection  for  our  special  benefit,  we  hereby 
constitute  ourselves,  who  are  members  of  this  Convention,  "A  Parent 
Education  Society,"  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  poor,  pious  and  talented 
young  men  in  their  preparation  for  the  Gospel  ministry  in  that  institution, 
or  such  other  institution  as  shall  be  selected  by  the  persons  hereinafter 
appointed  for  that  purpose. 

article  v. 

Qualified  candidates  may  be  aided  in  each  stage  of  preparatory  educa- 
tion for  the  ministry  ;  but,  except  in  very  singular  cases,  no  applicant  shall 
be  assisted  in  the  first  stage  who  lias  not  produced,  from  serious  and  respect- 
able characters,  unequivocal  testimonials  of  his  hopeful  piety,  promising 
talents  and  real  diligence  ;  nor  shall  any  person  be  continued  on  this  found- 
ation whose  instructor  or  instructors,  except  in  very  special  cases,  shall  not 
annually  exhibit  to  the  directors  satisfactory  evidence  that  in  point  of 
genius,  diligence,  literary  progress,  morals  and  piety,  he  is  a  proper  char- 
acter to  receive  aid  from  the  sacred  funds;  in  addition  to  which  each  bene- 
ficiary, after  his  admission  to  any  college,  shall  annually  exhibit  to  the 
directors  a  written  declaration  that  it  continues  to  be  his  serious  purpose 
to  devote  his  life  to  the  Gospel  ministry  in  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church. 

These  two  points  in  the  Constitution  were  zealously  discussed 
pro  and  con,  but  were  finally  adopted.  A  constitution  for  the 
government  of  auxiliaries  was  also  formed,  and  preliminary 
measures  adopted  for  the  establishment  of  a  manual  labor  school 
east  of  the  Alleghenies. 

The  purse  of  the  parent  society  was  to  be  filled  by  the  payment 
of  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  annually,  and  by  the  aid  of  jts  aux- 
iliaries. But  notwithstanding  all  that  was  said  and  done  in  the 
Convention  to  establish  and  perpetuate  this  parent  society,  its 
history  is  that  of,  a  child  that  dies  as  soon  as  it  is  born.  Before 
and  after  the  Convention  something  was  done  to  aid  these  young 

*This  was  the  projected  Union  Seminary  of  the  Ohio  Annual  Confer- 
ence. 


Lmes  <>(  Progrm  in  1845. 


189 


men  who  were  students  in  Oberlin  College,  but  tliis  was  the  work 
of  a  few  private  individuals,  of  whom  Miss  Mary  Still  and  Mrs. 
Eliza  ,  of  Philadelphia,  with  Mrs.  Harriet  Carroll,  of  Wash- 
ington, I>.  C,  were  chief. 

The  condition  of  the  book  concern  in  1845  was  painful.  This 
department  of  our  ecclesiastical  affairs  was  in  a  deplorable  state, 
as  evidenced  by  the  financial  report  of  the  general  book  steward, 
and  also  the  first  annual  report  of  the  general  book  agent,  which 
is  as  follows: 

To  the  Bishops  and  Conference : 

Bretfiren: — The  general  book  steward  and  committee  would  here  re- 
spectfully submit  to  your  inspection  a  report  of  their  doings  since  the  last 
Annual  Conference  of  this  district,  and  published  as  the  minutes  and  pro- 
ceedings of  that  body  : 

1st.  In  the  balance  sheet  which  we  place  before  you  for  consideration 
you  will  find,  upon  examination,  many  outstanding  debts  in  the  hands  of 
brethren  throughout  the  Connection,  amounting  to  $1,626.42,  due  by 
preachers'  fund  $115,52,  and  cash  in  hand  $222.59,  making  a  total  amount 
in  favor  of  the  book  concern  of  $1,964.53.  From  this  amount  deduct 
credit  account  to  sundries  $978,51,  and  you  will  find  a  balance  carried  to 
stock  account  of  $986.02. 

2d.  By  our  cash  report  you  may  see  that  $1,550.28  have  been  placed  in 
our  hands  during  the  past  year,  and  that  $1,327.69  have  been  paid  out, 
leaving  a  balance  of  $222.59  in  the  funds. 

3d.  Our  Preachers'  Fund  account  shows  that  $443.85  have  been  collected 
during  the  past  year,  one-half  of  which— $221.92— has  been  applied  to  the 
Bishops'  salaries,  etc.,  and  the  other  half— $221.93,  with  the  amount  of 
$311.09  collected  previously — has  been  carried  to  augment  our  stock 
account.  The  Bishops'  salaries,  amounting  to  $337.44,  have  been  charged 
to  the  Preachers'  Fund  account.  Of  this  sum  $221.92  have  been  paid, 
leaving  the  Preachers'  Fund  still  in  debt  to  the  amount  of  $115.52. 

4th.  By  referring  to  the  report,  you  will  see  that  during  the  past  year 
our  contingent  expenses  amount  to  $372.00 

5th.  In  our  commission  account  you  will  observe  that  there  has  been 
allowed  to  sundries  commission  on  the  sale  of  books  $45.71,  and  also  the 
general  book  steward's  commission  on  cash  received  from  sales  of  books, 
etc.s  $75.89— making  a  total  amount  of  $121.60. 

.  In  reviewing  this  report,  you  have  a  fair  opportunity  to  see  who  of  our 
itinerant  brethren  have  been  most  active  during  the  past  year  in  the  sale 
and  disposal  of  our  books  and  magazines,  etc.,  judging  from  the  field  of 
labor  in  which  each  brother  throughout  the  Connection  is  engaged. 

It  is  seen  that  about  one-third  of  our  itinerant  brethren  are  allowed 
commissions  for  their  labors  in  the  sale  of  books,  etc. ;  the  other  two-thirds 
are  allowed  nothing  because  they  have  done  nothing. 

If  any  of  our  brethren  have  sold  books,  etc.,  for  the  district  steward, 


190 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


it  is  the  duty  of  the  steward  to  report  annually  for  publication  the  amount 
of  cash  received  by  them  from  each  brother  on  account  of  such  sales,  and 
such  brethren  to  be  allowed  their  portion  of  commissions  placed  to  the 
credit  of  the  district  steward. 

Gth.  You  are  here  informed  in  our  publishing  report  that  our  expenses 
during  the  past  year  have  amounted  to  $848.55.  This  has  been  greatly 
augmented  by  the  publication  of  our  magazine,  which  we  fear  will  become 
a  heavy  burden  upon  our  funds  unless  there  be  some  other  means  pro- 
vided for  their  disposal.  You  will  see  by  the  general  book  agent's  report, 
which  we  will  submit  to  your  notice,  that  he  has  done  but  little  for  the 
advancement  of  the  interests  of  the  concern  during  the  past  year.  Unless 
proper  measures  are  entered  into  by  this  Conference,  and  vigorous  effort 
used  by  him  in  the  sale  and  disposal  of  our  books,  etc.,  and  procuring  sub- 
scribers to  the  magazine,  you  may  be  assured  that  his  bill  of  expenses  for 
another  year  will  prove  ruinous  rather  than  a  blessing  to  our  funds. 

Tli ere  are  several  publications  much  wanted  among  us,  which  we  have 
hitherto  mentioned,  but  for  the  want  of  means  we  have  in  a  great  measure 
been  prevented  from  attending  to  them.  The  history  and  life  of  Bishop 
Allen  and  that  of  Joseph  M.  Corr  we  cannot  publish  until  we  obtain  the 
proper  authenticated  matter  for  preparation.  The  manuscript  of  Sister 
Jarena  Lee  has  been  written  in  such  a  manner  that  it  is  impossible  to  de- 
cipher much  of  the  meaning  contained  in  it.  We  shall  have  to  apply  to 
Sister  Lee  to  favor  us  with  an  explanation  of  such  portions  of  the  manu- 
script as  are  not  understood  by  us. 

We,  with  respect,  remain  your  brethren  and  fellow-laborers  in  the  min- 
istry of  the  Gospel,  George  Hogarth,  General  Book  Steward. 
Benjamin  Ckoger, 
Samuel  Edwards, 
Joshua  Jenkins, 
Willis  Jones, 

Side  by  Bide  with  this  comprehensi ve  report  of  the  general 
book  steward,  which  was  accompanied  by  a  clear,  business-like 
set  of  accounts,  we  place  an  extract  from  the  first  annual  report 
of  the  general  book  agent,  M.  M.  Clark: 

On  concluding  this  report  the  agent  would  beg  leave  to  suggest  a  few 
thoughts  to  the  consideration  of  the  Conference  relating  to  the  book 
agency.  That  an  efficient  agency  is  much  needed  follows  from  these  con- 
siderations :  1st.  There  is  not  a  circuit  that  your  agent  visited  where  he 
had  not  been  asked  such  questions  as  these  by  not  a  few  individuals,  viz. : 
"  When  was  the  book  concern  established?"  "What  is  the  object  for 
which  it  was  established  ?  "  "  Does  it  belong  to  the  colored  people  or  to 
the  white  people?  "  "Is  there  not,  after  all,  some  hoax  in  it?  Is  it  not  a 
money  trap?"  Well,  now,  this  ignorance,  and  a  hundred  times  more, 
prevails  among  our  own  Church  members,  and  nothing  but  an  active,  effi- 
cient and  enlightened  agency  can  remove  it  and  get  the  claims  of  our  book 
concern  rightly  before  our  people. 


Committee. 


Lines  of  Progress  in  I 8  15. 


101 


This  ignorance  prevails  not  only  in  regard  to  the  book  concern  itself 
but  also  in  regard  to  our  books  and  their  contents.  The  agent  observed 
in  his  lecture  not  long  since,  that  the  power  of  the  government  of  our 
Church  is  lodged  in  tour  places— and  when  he  had  done  lecturing,  several 
lay  members  and  two  or  three  preachers  came  to  him  to  ask  where  those 
places  were,  and,  in  order  to  inform  themselves,  bought  Disciplines.  From 
that  same  place  the  agent  has  received,  since  he  has  arrived  in  this  city,  a 
letter  from  an  unknown  friend,  stating  that  the  above  lecture  had  awak- 
ened more  than  an  ordinary  degree  of  interest  in  that  city,  which  shows 
the  necessity  of  enlightened  lectures  on  the  subject.  An  incalculable 
amount  of  good  might  be  done  among  our  people  in  selling  books,  in  en- 
couraging them  in  the  education  of  their  children,  in  setting  before  them 
the  sure  and  certain  advantages  arising  from  an  enlightened  education — 
the  advantages  of  virtue,  of  morality,  of  religion,  of  the  refinement  and 
cultivation  of  the  natural  powers  of  the  mind,  and  the  making  of  a  proper 
disposition  of  them  for  the  good  of  our  common  race,  or  the  relation  in 
which  one  moral  agent  stands  to  another. 

That  these  most  desirable  ends  might  in  some  degree  be  promoted  by  a 
proper  agency  is  manifested  by  a  spirit  of  inquiry  which  the  agent  has 
discovered  among  the  young.  Inquiry  is  everywhere  made  for  books 
other  than  those  now  published  by  the  book  concern.  Inquiry  is  made  for 
the  life  of  Bishop  Allen— for  the  biographies  of  some  of  the  fathers  of  our 
Church,  whose  lives  and  labors  have  perished  from  the  eyes  of  the  Church, 
but  which  ought  to  live  on  the  enduring  pages  of  history  for  the  encour- 
agement of  the  rising  generations  in  the  path  of  virtue,  morality  and 
religion,  and  for  the  satisfaction  of  surviving  friends  and  relatives.  In- 
quiry is  made  for  the  history  of  our  own  Church,  concisely  compiled  and 
elegantly  bound,  which  will  give  it  a  more  ready  sale.  Inquiry  is  also  made 
for  the  New  Testament,  to  be  bound  in  neat  pocket-book  style,  some  plain 
and  some  gilded,  and  the  demand  is  for  it  to  be  done  in  our  own  book 
concern.  Inquiry  is  made  further  for  some  works  on  science,  to  be  com- 
piled and  published  by  our  own  colored  men,  either  on  natural  science,  or 
moral  science,  or  mental  science,  or  political  science,  or  all. 

Could  our  book  concern  be  made  to  meet  all  these  demands  it  would 
prove  abundantly  useful  to  our  race  and  Connection.  And  could  the 
agency  be  sustained  free  of  cost  to  the  book  establishment — and  would  the 
people  give  that  encouragement  to  the  sale  of  books  and  to  the  subscrip- 
tion for  the  magazine  which  the  subject  demands  (I  mean  the  whole  of 
our  Church  members),  the  urgent  demands  of  our  young  people  might  be 
easily  met,  and  we  could  carry  out  all  the  objects  for  which  the  concern  was 
got  up.  Seventeen  thousand  members  compose  our  entire  Connection. 
It  is  a  reasonable  thing  to  expect  one  half  of  that  number — eight  thousand 
five  hundred — would  be  regular  annual  subscribers  to  the  magazine,  which 
would  afford  an  annual  sum  of  $8,500  from  that  source  alone.  It  is  also  a 
reasonable  thing  to  suppose  that  among  seventeen  thousand  members 
$8,000  worth  of  books  ought  to  be  sold  annually,  in  which  case  there  would 
be  an  annual  sum  coining  into  the  concern  of  $16,500.    Here,  then,  would 


192 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


be  an  annual  sufficient  sum  to  meet  all  annual  demands,  and  to  publish 
whatever  books  an  inquiring  community  might  ask.  But  such  is  the  want 
of  interest  on  the  subject,  such  is  the  want  of  taste  for  reading  among  our 
people,  except  perhaps  one-tenth  part  of  them,  that  the  books  cannot  be 
sold,  or  subscribers  obtained  to  the  magazine,  except  at  a  very  sparing  rate, 
barely  sufficient  to  pay  the  traveling  expenses  of  the  agent,  which  con- 
sumes the  whole  of  the  profits  on  the  books  and  considerable  more. 

For  this  consideration,  your  agent,  after  returning  his  sincere  thanks 
and  gratitude  to  that  body  who  created  him  the  general  book  agent,  for  the 
distinguished  honor  they  were  pleased  to  confer  upon  him,  and  at  the  same 
time  expressing  his  deepest  regrets  that  he  has  been  of  little  or  no  use  to 
the  book  concern  since  his  elecfion,  in  consequence  of  the  unfavorable 
state  of  things  among  us,  and  the  accident  which  your  agent  met  with  on  the 
first  of  March  last,  which  confined  him  to  the  house  for  four  weeks  and 
prevented  him  from  labor  about  six  weeks,  does,  with  the  most  profound 
respect  to  this  sacred  body,  beg  leave,  at  the  will  of  this  Conference,  to 
resign  this  office,  and  to  be  disposed  of  in  any  other  way  which  their 
wisdom  may  direct.  M.  M.  Clark,  General  Book  Agent. 

New  York,  June  21  st,  1845. 

The  reasons  which  made  the  concern  fail  to  produce  what  was 
then  desired  by  all,  and  expected  by  many,  still  exist,  and  arc 
the  real  cause  of  its  failures  from  that  day  to  the  present.  The 
facts  are,  that  after  thirty-three  years  (up  to  1878)  it  stood  where 
it  did  not  cover  its  own  expenses.  It  was,  therefore,  always  in 
debt  and  unable  to  pay,  and  it  was  frequently  threatened  with 
legal  process  to  enforce  payment.  During  all  that  period  of 
thirty-three  years  we  have  had  at  the  head  of  our  book  concern 
some  of  the  best  cultivated  talents  that  could  be  found  in  our 
denomination.  For  our  general  book  stewards  and  editors  we 
have  had  such  men  as  Bishop  Allen,  Joseph  M.  Corr,  George 
Hogarth,  Augustus  R.  Green,  M.  M.  Clark,  J.  P.  Campbell,  James 
Lynch,  Elisha  Weaver,  A.  L.  Stanford,  Joshua  Woodlyn,  W.  H. 
Hunter,  H.  H.  Turner  and  B.  T.  Tanner,  Avith  the  best  clerical 
talent  which  each  of  these  could  associate  with  himself;  yet, 
notwithstanding,  that  period  found  us  still  crippled  with  debts. 
The  answer  to  why  this  continued  failure,  is  found  in  the  reasons 
given  by  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  who  was  a  merchant  by  profes- 
sion, and  therefore  not  accustomed  to  deal  in  oratory  nor  rhetoric, 
but  with  the  living  facts  of  business  life.  He  was  no  mere  en- 
thusiastic admirer  of  his  own  denomination,  so  full  of  ambition 
to  reach  the  highest  office  in  the  gift  of  his  brethren  that  he 
would  buy  their  votes  at  the  expense  of  contradicting  facts  and 
palpable  truths,    He  weighed  things  before  he  undertook  to  ex- 


Lines  <>f  Progress  in  1815. 


193 


press  their  value  by  words,  and  then  he  employed  just  such 
words  as  really  represented  their  value.  There  can  be  no  hesi- 
tancy in  affirming  that  what  hindered  the  success  of  the  book 
concern  in  1845  hindered  the  same  in  1878. 

The  literature  of  the  year  .1845  may  he  shown  in  the  two  fol- 
lowing productions  from  the  respective  pens  of  the  general  hook 
agent,  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  and  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne.  The* former 
relates  to  the  condition  of  our  people  in  tin;  state;  of  Ohio  in 
18  1.").  It  is  a  gloomy  picture  of  the  religious  condition,  and  had 
it  been  drawn  by  the  hand  of  an  enemy,  outside  of  our  ministry, 
one  might  be  led  to  look  upon  it  as  a  caricature.  But  there  are 
two  reasons  why  it  is  worthy  of  our  belief.  It  was  sketched  by 
our  own  accredited  book  agent,  who,  in  the  course  of  his  travels, 
felt  it  his  right,  duty  and  privilege  to  inform  the  readers  of  our 
Church  organ  concerning  the  condition  of  our  people  in  all  the 
states  which  he  visited;  and  scenes  of  this  kind  might  be  wit- 
nessed in  many  of  our  churches  at  a  much  later  date  in  other 
staters  north  of  the  Ohio  as  well  as  in  the  states  south  of  it,  and 
in  the  more  enlightened  regions  of  the  east  as  well  as  in  the  west. 
Their  productions  were  printed  in  the  magazine  of  that  date. 
Rev.  George  Hogarth's  article  is  the  first  of  a  series  on  "The 
Condition  of  Our  People,"  and  he  says: 

Thinking  it  will  perhaps  be  gratifying  to  some  to  see  some  remarks  from 
the  book  agent  in  each  number  of  the  magazine  on  the  condition  of  our 
people,  as  I  may  learn  it  in  traveling  among  them,  I  will  here  commence  a 
series  of  short  essays  on  that  subject.  First,  their  religious  condition — and 
here  on  the  onset  I  may  justly  say  I  have  clearly  seen  the  verification  of 
that  true  remark  "  like  priest,  like  people  ;  "  as  the  priests  are,  so  will  the 
people  be.  If  the  priests  are  ignorant,  unacquainted  with  human  nature, 
unacquainted  with  the  human  mind,  their  manners  low  and  unimproved, 
so  will  the  people  be.  That  we  need  an  enlightened,  educated  ministry  no 
one  ought  to  deny.  To  give  a  case  showing  the  necessity  of  this,  permit 
me  to  say  that  I  attended  a  protracted  meeting  in  a  certain  village  where  a 
considerable  effort  was  made  to  get  persons  to  come  forward  to  be  prayed 
for,  but  the  effort  proved  unavailing.  The  minister  in  charge  appointed 
a  meeting  for  the  next  night — a  general  prayer-meeting.  After  two  or 
three  prayers  had  been  offered  to  the  throne  of  grace  the  brother  again 
called  for  mourners,  and  none  coming  forward,  he  then  called  for  one  or 
more  benches  to  be  set  out;  that  done,  he  said  that  he  would  now  take 
another  tact  on  the  devil,  that  he  intended  to  defeat  him  that  night.  He 
then  declared  that  the  devil  was  in  everybody  in  the  house,  and  he  in- 
tended to  drive  him  out  of  them ;  that  there  was  not  one  of  them  that  had 
13 


194  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


any  religion  whatever,  therefore  every  member  of  the  Church  must  now 
come  forward  to  the  mourners'  bench  and  get  religion,  for  they  had  none; 
they  were  all  going  to  hell.  Some  eight  or  nine  of  the  poor  creatures,  af- 
frighted at  what  their  pastor  said,  came  forward  in  great  agony  and  distress — 
all  professors  of  religion,  too — and  after  they  had  been  down  to  the  benches 
some  time  they  arose,  one  after  another,  shouting  and  declaring  that  they 
had  again  got  religion.  I  observed  that  the  most  sober,  and  perhaps  the 
most  exeYnplary  members  of  the  Church,  did  not  comply  with  the  earnest 
solicitations  of  their  pastor,  and  he  himself  observing  this,  said  to  them 
that  did  not  come  forward  that  they  must  get  religion  again  ;  they  were  all 
on  the  road  to  hell,  local  preachers,  class  leaders,  stewards,  and  all.  After 
all  those  that  went  forward  had  been  converted  again— I  say  again,  for  they 
professed  to  have  had  religion  before — the  pastor  greatly  exulted  in  the 
fact  that  he  had  defeated  the  devil  by  getting  several  converts,  and  quietly 
dismissed  the  meeting.  While  sitting  there  and  viewing  and  reflecting 
upon  this  whole  transaction,  my  mind  had  never  before  been  so  deeply 
impressed  with  the  great  importance  of  an  enlightened  ministry.  Our 
fathers  who  have  gone  before  us  and  those  who  still  do  the  best  they  can, 
and  for  the  great  good  they  have  done  in  organizing  our  Church,  getting 
it  on  a  good  basis,  and  giving  things  a  proper  direction,  deserve  our 
gratitude  and  our  thanks  and  our  praise.  But  0  !  my  God!  what  a  work  is 
yet  to  be  done!  Our  fathers  have  only  laid  the  foundation  and  got  the 
timber  in  part  together,  and  have  left  us,  their  sons,  to  erect  the  building. 
But  more  particularly  in  regard  to  the  religious  condition  of  our  people: 
In  this  state  (Ohio)  there  are  from  twelve  to  sixteen  thousand  colored 
people.  Of  that  number  say  twelve  hundred  are  members  of  our  Church  ; 
of  this  number,  perhaps  six  out  of  ten  can  read  the  New  Testament.  The 
manner  of  worship  in  our  churches  here  in  the  West  is  of  a  character 
similar  to  the  state  of  education  among  the  preachers  and  people,  confused 
and  disorderly,  owing  to  the  want  of  cultivated  minds  and  manners.  To 
this  remark,  however,  there  are  some  individual  exceptions  of  persons  who 
have  a  taste  for  more  regularity  and  refinement  in  worship. 

But  few  of  our  people  can  read  our  hymn-books  correctly.  This  cir- 
cumstance tends  to  introduce  disorder  and  confusion  in  our  singing;  the 
great  majority,  not  being  able  to  use  our  hymn-books,  make  fugue  tunes 
for  themselves,  and  these  fugue  tunes  are  always  transcripts  of  low 
thoughts,  ignorance  and  superstition,  hence,  confusion  in  singing.  Their 
language  used  in  prayer  is  also  characteristic  of  the  want  of  education, 
being  almost  always  incorrect,  and  when  it  is,  only  by  mere  chance.  And 
for  the  want  of  good  language  they  cannot  express,  to  the  edification  of 
the  Church,  their  own  good  thoughts,  hence  confusion  in  prayer. 

Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  (now  senior  Bishop  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church) 
completed  his  essays  on  the  "Education  of  the  Ministry"  some- 
time in  the  autumn  of  this  year,  1845.  They  were  eight  in  num- 
ber, and  created  much  excitement.  It  was  a  vital  question  with 
the  Church  at  that  time,  and  provoked  much  discussion,  and 


Lines  of  Progress  vn  1845.  L96 

even  Btrife,  between  the  intelligent  and  the  ignorant.  But  this 
movement  in  the  right  direction  aided  the  Church  largely  in  the 
advanced  steps  it  tools  soon  after.  The  following  essa  y  is  the  last 
of  the  scries : 

ESSAY  ON  THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  MINISTRY. 

15 Y  D.  A.  PAYNE. 

The  Ministers  of  the  Gospel  ought  to  be  well  educated. 
We  now  conclude  our  essays  by  an  appeal  to  all  who  are  concerned,  it  e. 
the  whole  Church.  And  first:  We  appeal  to  the  venerable  fathers  of  the 
Connection,  and  call  upon  you  to  assist  us  in  this  glorious  enterprise  by 
giving  your  sanction  to  our  efforts.  While  we  acknowledge  that  your  ad- 
vanced life  and  domestic  cares  may  present  insurmountable  barriers  to  your 
improvement,  we  hail  you  as  the  pioneers  of  the  Church.  You,  with  the 
enterprising  Richard  Allen,  have  gone  forth,  the  broadax  of  primitive 
labors  upon  your  shoulders,  entered  the  forest,  hewn  down  the  timber,  and 
erected  the  stupendous  fabric  which  now  constitutes  our  Zion.  0,  cheer 
us,  then,  while  we  labor  to  beautify  and  array  it  on  to  perfection  !  Let  it 
never  be  said  that  you  were  opposed  to  the  cause  of  sacred  learning,  or 
that  you  hindered  the  car  of  improvement.  But  while  you  are  descending 
to  your  peaceful  and  honorable  graves,  let  us  hear  your  invigorating  voices 
saying  unto  us:  "Go  on,  my  sons,  go  on!"  Then  shall  the  bright  pages 
of  history  hand  down  your  memories  as  a  precious  legacy  to  unborn  gen- 
erations, who,  with  hearts  of  gratitude,  shall  look  to  this  period  and  thank 
heaven  that  their  progenitors  were  not  the  enemies,  but  the  friends  of 
education.  Beloved  young  brethren,  we  appeal  to  you,  because  a  glorious 
career  of  usefulness  lies  before  you— an  uncultivated  field,  long  and  wide, 
invites  you  to  enter  and  drive  the  plowshare  heavier  throughout  its  length 
and  breadth.  Truth  declares  that  the  soil  is  deep  and  rich,  and  will  yield 
an  abundant  harvest.  Up  !  up  !  to  the  toil.  The  reward  is  in  the  fruits — 
your  resting  place  is  in  heaven.  Put  forth  every  effort,  employ  every 
means,  embrace  every  opportunity  to  cultivate  your  minds,  and  enrich 
them  with  the  gems  of  holy  learning.  Be  not  satisfied  with  little  things, 
lift  your  standard  to  the  skies,  and  your  attainments  will  be  great.  Swear 
eternal  hatred  to  ignorance,  and  let  your  banner  float  upon  the  breeze  of 
heaven  with  this  inscription  : 

Wisdom  to  silver  we  prefer, 

And  gold  is  dross  compared  to  her. 

All  difficulties  then  will  fade  away  before  you,  and  knowledge  will  be- 
come just  what  the  Creator  designed  it  to  be,  an  element  of  your  manhood, 
in  which  you  may  live  and  move  and  have  your  being. 

Venerable  mothers  of  Israel !  we  call  upon  you  to  aid  us  in  this  glorious 
reformation.  Give  us  your  influence  ;  give  us  your  money  ;  give  us  your 
prayers.  Hannah-like,  dedicate  your  sons  to  the  work  of  God  before  they 
are  born ;  then  Samuel-like,  they  will  be  heaven-called  and  heaven-sent, 
full  of  the  spirit  of  wisdom,  and  full  of  grace.    Teach  them  from  their  in- 


196 


Hidory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


fancy  to  value  learning  more  than  silver  and  wisdom  more  than  gold.  Teach 
them  that  the  glory  of  their  manhood  consists  not  in  eating  and  dressing, 
but  in  the  cultivation  of  the  immortal  mind  and  the  purity  of  their  morals. 
Thus  will  you  inspire  them  with  the  love  of  what  is  great  and  good,  paving 
the  way  to  their  future  greatness  and  their  future  glory.  0,  who  can  sleep 
when  earth  and  heaven  are  in  motion  !  Who  can  stand  aloof  from  a  work 
in  which  the  angels  find  delight?  Who  will  dare  to  oppose  that  which 
<  rod  himself  has  decreed?  The  fall  of  ignorance  is  as  certain  as  the  fall  of 
Babylon,  and  the  universal  spread  of  knowledge  as  the  light  of  the  Son, 
for  the  Lord  hath  said,  "Many  shall  run  to  and  fro,  and  knowledge  shall 
be  increased."  And  who  does  not  see  that  this  divine  declaration  is  daily 
fulfilling?  The  press  is  pouring  forth  its  millions  of  publications  every 
year,  in  every  form,  and  almost  in  every  language,  so  that  books  and 
newspapers  are  becoming  as  common  as  the  stones  in  the  street.  Common 
schools,  seminaries  and  colleges  are  being  erected  in  almost  every  land  and 
every  nation.  Lyceums,  literary  societies,  are  being  instituted  among 
men  of  all  ranks  and  all  complexions,  so  that  it  may  truly  be  said  that  the 
beaming  chariot  of  the  genius  of  knowledge  is  rolling  triumphantly  on- 
ward to  the  conquest  of  the  world  ;  therefore,  the  oppressors  of  education 
must  either  ground  the  weapons  of  their  unequal  warfare  or  be  crushed  to 
death  beneath  its  ponderous  wheels. 

A  period  of  light  has  already  dawned  upon  the  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  Its  morning  star  was  seen  in  the  doings  of  the 
General  Conference  of  1844;  its  opening  glories  were  manifested  in  the 
decrees  of  the  Educational  Convention  of  1845.  Blessed  is  the  man  or 
woman  who  will  aid  the  enterprise  of  heaven!  Yea,  thrice  blessed  is  the 
one  who  will  hasten  on  this  age  of  light!  In  relation  to  this  subject  we 
can  say  with  Moses,  "  0,  that  all  the  Lord's  people  were  prophets  !  " 

As  for  ourselves,  we  have  dedicated  our  all  to  this  sacred  work.  We 
have  lain  our  souls  and  bodies,  our  time,  our  influence,  our  talents,  upon 
the  altar  of  our  people's  improvement  and  elevation;  there  we  intend  to 
bleed,  and  smoke,  and  burn,  till  life  itself  shall  be  extinct. 

The  calamitous  fact  that  our  people  are  entombed  in  ignorance  and 
oppression  forever  stares  us  in  the  face;  it  shall  be  the  fuel  of  the  flames 
that  consume  us,  and  while  we  talk,  and  write,  and  pray,  we  shall  rise 
above  opposition  and  toil,  cheered  and  inspired  by  that  God  whose  lips 
have  said,  "The  priest's  lips  should  keep  knowledge." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

184()-1S47. 

Baltimore  Annual  Conference— A  Proposed  Union  with  the  Zion  Wesleyan 
Connection— Philadelphia  Churches  Probationers  Admitted-  The  Diffi- 
culties of  1848— New  York  Churches— Decrees  of  Conference— A  Letter 
to  the  World's  Convention — The  Canadian  Churches — Resolutions 
Against  Slaveholding— Ohio  Churches— Statistics  of  the  Ohio  Confer- 
ences—Missionary Field  Laid  Out— The  New  York  Churches. 

r"PMlrC  Baltimore  Conference,  at  its  annual  meeting  in  1840, 
|  made  it  the  duty  of  the  preachers  to  form  educational  socie- 
ties in  their  respective  charges.  They  ordained  genera]  fasting 
and  prayer  among  their  churches  on  the  first  Friday  in  Sep- 
tember, 184(5.  They  requested  the  Bishops  to  appoint  some  one 
of  their  number  to  prepare  a  missionary  sermon  to  be  delivered 
at  the  next  session  in  1847.  They  resolved  to  publish  the  min- 
utes in  pamphlet  form  that  the  pages  of  the  magazine  might  not 
be  burdened  with  them.  They  declared  themselves  favorable 
to  a  union  with  the  Zion  Wesley  Connection,  and  they  made  the 
disposition  known  in  the  subjoined  form: 

Whereas,  It  is  a  fact  greatly  to  be  lamented — on  account  of  the  disunion 
in  Christian  fellowship,  on  account  of  the  division  of  means  to  do  good 
and  bless  mankind,  on  account  of  the  towering  prejudices  thrown  up 
as  high  as  the  heavens,  reaching  like  the  tops  of  Alpine  mountains  be- 
tween the  two  Connections,  on  account  of  the  sacred  cause  of  schools,  day 
and  Sabbath,  the  cause  of  general  education,  and  on  account  of  the  present 
future  and  eternal  welfare  of  immortal  souls— that  the  two  religious  denom- 
inations of  Christians  in  these  United  States,  occupying  nearly  co-cxten- 
sively  the  same  territory,  are  in  the  present  positions  a  heavy  weight,  the 
one  to  the  other,  in  the  high  mission  of  the  church  militant  in  the  spread 
of  the  knowledge  of  the  Lord  among  us,  that  is  to  say,  the  A.  M.  Episco- 
cal  and  the  A.  M.  Zion  Churches ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  if,  in  the  providence  of  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church, 
any  plan  or  system  of  means  can  be  devised  and  matured  by  which  the 
two  bodies  can  be  amicably  brought  together  into  one  consolidated  body, 
and  in  which  tkey  could  both  consistently  agree  upon  terms  of  Christian 
fellowship,  we,  the  members  of  this  Baltimore  Annual  Conference,  enter- 
tain no  objections  to  the  same. 

Rev.  M.  M.  Clark  gave  notice  that  if  nothing  in  the  providence 
of  God  prevented,  he  would  call  up  the  above  for  adoption  at  the 

(  197  ) 


ION 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  1847.  This  praiseworthy  inten- 
tion was  never  carried  into  effect  by  Brother  Clark,  owing,  I 
believe,  to  the  circumstance  that  he  was  in  Europe  at  the  time 
of  the  meeting  of  said  Conference. 

The  number  of  ministers  assembled  to  transact  the  busi- 
ness of  the  Philadelphia  churches  in  this  same  year  was  the 
largest  known  heretofore.  There  were  three  Bishops,  twenty- 
one  elders,  fourteen  deacons,  and  twenty-eight  preachers — a  total 
of  sixty-six.  There  were  six  young  men  admitted  on  probation 
in  the  ministry — Edward  Farris.  William  X.  Brown.  H.  J.  Young, 
Thomas  Oliver  and  Richard  Wilson.  The  secretaries  of  this  ses- 
sion were  David  Ware  and  Alexander  AVayman.  Henry  Davis 
and  Alexander  Davis  were  admitted  into  full  connection.  James 
Burton  had  died.  The  whole  number  of  members  reported  for 
the  Philadelphia  District  was  five  thousand  one  hundred  and 
seventy-one,  of  which  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  were  enrolled  on  the  register  of  Bethel  in  Philadelphia.  The 
decrease,  therefore,  shows  itself  to  be  three  hundred  and  forty. 
At  this  Conference  we  find  the  location  of  the  ministers  as  fol- 
lows: William  Moore  at  Bethel,  Philadelphia,  where  he  received 
only  |200  in  money  as  quarterage  salary,  though  he  had  under 
his  pastoral  care  Bethel,  containing  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  twenty-five  members,  with  the  Union  Church  of  three  hun- 
dred and  twenty-eight  members — a  total  of  two  thousand  one 
hundred  and  fifty-one;  Willis  Nazery  was  on  the  Princeton  Cir- 
cuit. A.  W.  Wayman  at  Wesley  Church,  George  Greenly  on  Buck 
County  Circuit.  Clayton  Dickman  on  Chester  Circuit,  Israel  Scott 
on  Burlington  Circuit.  J.  L.  Armstrong  on  Salem  Circuit,  Henry 
Davis  on  Trenton  Circuit.  W.  H.  Jones  on  Reading  Circuit,  An- 
drew Massey  the  Smyrna  Mission,  and  Stephen  Smith  the  County 
Mission.  The  Conference  concurred  in  the  proposition  of  the 
Educational  Convention  to  erect  a  manual  labor  school  east  of 
the  Alleghenies.  It  also  elected  two  book  stewards  for  the  dis- 
trict of  Philadelphia.  These  were  David  Ware  and  J.  J.  G.  Bias. 
One  motion  was  made,  which  we  record  as  the  precursor  of  the 
great  difficulties  that  took  place  in  Bethel  Church.  ^Philadelphia, 
in  1848.  The  sense  of  the  house  was  taken  to  know  if  the  con- 
stitution of  Bethel  Church  was  in  accordance  with  the  govern- 
ment and  discipline  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
This  was  decided  in  the  negative.  Then  the  following  resolution 
was  passed : 


I.sk; -1847. 


I'M) 


Resolved,  That  the  Bishops  be  requested  to  address  ;i  pastoral  letter  to 
the  trustees  and  constit  utional  members  of  Bethel  Church,  Philadelphia, 
stating  the  importance  of  making  the  articles  of  association  conform  in  all 
respects  ami  wholly  to  t lie  Discipline  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America,  for  the  reasons  which  the  Con- 
ference shall  recommend,  as  far  as  consistent  with  the  lawsof  Pennsylvania. 

Oti  Saturday  morning,  June  5th, the  ministers  of  the  New  York 
District  met  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Bishop  Quini)  presided 
alone  in  this  Conference.  M.  M.  Clark  and  E.  Africanus  were 
elected  secretaries.  As  soon  as  the  house  was  organized  Bishop 
Quinn  rose  and  "briefly  delivered  his  annual  address  to  the 
Conference,  by  invoking  the  attention  of  the  members  to  the 
consideration  of  the  special  care  and  protection  of  our  lives  and 
health,  through  the  mercy  of  God,  during  the  past  Conference 
year,  who  has  brought  us  from  remote  regions  together  in  an 
Annual  Conference,  for  which  we  have  great  reason  to  be  devot- 
edly thankful."  He  enjoined  upon  the  members  the  all-impor- 
tant necessity  of  being  deeply  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  the 
Gospel  of  peace;  that  being  seen  by  others  as  ministers  would  be 
their  best  shield  against  reproach  and  their  surest  recommenda- 
tion as  the  stewards  of  Christ.  He  insisted  upon  the  importance 
of  a  strict  conformity  to  order  and  decorum  in  debating  ques- 
tions, and  against  that  ungentlemanly  and  indecorous  manner 
of  some  who  aim  to  elicit  the  sentiments  of  others  with  a  seem- 
ing view  to  attack  and  ridicule  them;  also  the  great  need  of 
cultivating  a  spirit  of  love  and  patience,  of  being  much  engaged 
in  prayer,  and  of  entertaining  a  sacred  regard  for  our  characters 
as  ministers,  who  should  aim  at  the  highest  attainments  in  Chris- 
tian manners  and  morals.  The  venerable  speaker  concluded 
his  remarks  by  solemnly  invoking  upon  the  Conference  the  ben- 
ediction of  our  Heavenly  Father  during  its  session.  One  itiner- 
ant and  seven  local  preachers  were  received  into  Conference  as 
probationers — R.  Smith,  William  M.  G.  Thomas,  William  Har- 
man,  Peter  Schuyler,  James  P.  Thompson,  Voss  Neal,  Thomas 
Den ) us  and  Reuben  Leonard.  Four  brethren  were  admitted  into 
full  connection — John  Williams,  Stephen  Amos,  N.  C,  B.  T.  and 
James  Hyatt— the  two  latter  being  itinerants.  The  total  num- 
ber of  members  in  Society  returned  at  this  Conference  was  two 
thousand  one  hundred  and  seventy-nine.  The  decrease  was  one 
hundred  and  two.  The  points  had  been  filled  the  previous  year 
as  follows:  Eli  N.  Hall,  Brooklyn  Station,  New  York;  John 


200 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Boggs,  New  York  City  Station;  Richard  Robinson,  Boston 
City  Station;  J.  F.  Beulah,  Long  Island  Circuit;  H.  Johnson, 
New  Bedford  Station;  Jacob  Matthews,  Providence,  R.  I. ;  George 
Weir,  Buffalo  Station;  Levin  Tilman,  Norwich  Station;  Charles 
Burch,  New  Haven  and  Bridgeport;  James  Hyatt,  Binghampton  ; 
Thomas  W.  Jackson,  Albany  City;  N.  C.  B.  Thomas,  Haverstraw 
Circuit;  E.  C.  Africanus,  Hudson  Circuit.  These  preachers' 
quarterage  salaries  amounted  to  $1,656.08. 
This  Conference  also  decreed: 

1st.  That  any  of  its  traveling  preachers  who  might  neglect  to 
raise  the  two-cent  money  should  be  punished  as  in  cases  of  im- 
moral conduct,  unless  he  produces  a  certificate  from  the  steward 
of  his  charge  showing  that  he  had  discharged  his  duty  in  rela- 
tion to  the  money. 

2d.  That  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  to  collect  all  in- 
formation they  can  relating  to  the  history  of  our  Church,  and 
forward  the  same  to  the  general  book  steward  at  as  early  a  period 
as  possible,  to  be  presented  by  him  to  the  General  Conference  in 
1848,  and  that  M.  M.  Clark,  E.  N.  Ware  and  J.  J.  G.  Bias  be  that 
committee.  -; 

3d.  That  an  itinerant  society  be  formed  among  the  members 
of  the  Conference,  whose  benefits  shall  extend  to  all  the  travel- 
ing preachers  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. f 

4th.  That  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  to  communicate 
with  the  convention  to  be  held  in  London,  in  the  Kingdom  of 
Great  Britain,  in  August  next,  on  the  subject  of  Evangelical 
Christian  Alliance,  and  that  M.  M.  Clark,  George  Hogarth  and 
Edward  Africanus  be  that  committee. 

Conference  also  expressed  their  concurrence  with  the  Educa- 
tional Convention  of  1845,  to  establish  a  manual  labor  school 
east  of  the  Allegheny  Mountains. 

When  the  time  arrived  for  the  report  from  the  committee  ap- 
pointed by  the  Conference  to  communicate  with  the  World's 

*The  committee  never  discharged  the  duty  assigned  to  them.  The 
chairman,  though  a  person  of  fine  talents,  and  one  of  the  best  educated 
preachers  in  the  Convention,  was  neither  by  nature  nor  taste  fitted  for 
such  a  work.  His  colleagues  were,  in  regard  to  historical  taste,  much  like 
himself. 

tThis  was  the  origin  of  what  is  now  known  as  the  Preachers'  Aid 
Society.  It  is  a  very  useful  organization,  but  its  benefits  are  confined  to 
its  own  members  in  each  Annual  Conference  where  it  exists. 


1846-1847. 


201 


Convention  from  the  Evangelical  Alliance  mentioned,  it  sent  by 
its  delegate  to  said  convention,  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark,  the  following 
letter: 

Brooklyn,  July  15th,  1846. 
To  (he  President  and  Members  of  the  World's  Convention  of  the  Christian  Church, 
to  he  Held  in  the  City  of  London,  on  the  \{Mh  Day  of  August,  L846: 
Brethren  : —The  undersigned  committee,  appointed  by  the  New  York" 
Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Church  of  the  United  States  of 
America  to  correspond  with  your  sacred  body,  do  hereby,  through  our 
delegates,  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark,  of  the  New  York  District,  formerly  a  student 
of  Jefferson  College,  Pa.,  and  Rev.  I).  A.  Payne,  of  the  Baltimore  District, 
formerly  a  student  of  the  Gettysburg  College,  Pa.,  send  these  presents, 
humbly  soliciting  your  particular  attention. 

It  is  known  that  the  Church  and  people  whom  we  represent  have  al- 
ways labored  in  this  country  under  many  embarrassments  which  would  be 
unnecessary  for  us  at  present  to  mention,  being  satisfied  that  a  full  account 
of  this  portion  of  our  history  is  given  in  the  Episcopal  Address  to  the 
members  of  our  Church,  which  you  will  find  in  the  Preface;  of  our  Disci- 
pline, we  now  forward  to  you  for  your  consideration,  where  you  will  learn 
the  full  cause  of  our  separation  from  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of 
this  country. 

The  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  America  has  been  in  ex- 
istence thirty  years,  as  you  may  observe  on  the  perusal  of  the  historical 
account  given  of  the  origin  and  continuation  of  its  episcopacy,  which  may 
be  found  in  Chapter  I.,  Section  1  of  our  Discipline. 

Richard  Allen  was  our  first  ordained  Bishop,  and  Morris  Brown,  Edward 
Waters  and  William  Paul  Quinn  are  his  successors  in  office.  We  have 
at  present  about  seventeen  thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy-five  com- 
municants attached  to  our  general  Church,  with  about  eighty  itinerants 
and  ninety-seven  local  preachers,  three  of  whom  are  Bishops,  sixty-two 
elders,  forty-eight  deacons  and  sixty-six  licensed  preachers. 

The  Church  is  located  within  fourteen  states  of  the  Union,  viz. :  New 
York,  Connecticut,  Rhode  Island,  Massachusetts,  Maine,  New  Jersey, 
Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland,  Michigan,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois  and 
Missouri,  and  in  the  British  Province  of  Canada  West.  It  is  divided  into 
six  districts,  viz. :  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  New  York,  Ohio,  Indiana  and 
Canada  Districts.  In  each  district  there  is  held  an  Annual  Conference  for 
the  regulation  of  the  spiritual  affairs  of  the  Church  among  its  ministers, 
and  every  fourth  year  a  General  Conference,  by  delegation  from  each  dis- 
trict, takes  place  to  make  rules  and  regulations  for  its  government.  There 
are  about  seventy-one  circuits  and  stations  and  two  hundred  and  ninety- 
six  churches  and  preaching  places  within  those  several  districts. 

For  the  support  of  our  itinerant  ministry  contributions  are  made  by  the 
members  throughout  our  several  circuits  and  stations.  In  some  places 
they  are  tolerably  well  provided  for,  and  in  others  but  poorly.  We  have 
many  useful  institutions  among  us,  especially  by  the  females,  for  the  aid  of 
the  Gospel  and  mutual  support  of  each  other  in  time  of  affliction. 


202 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  literary  condition  of  our  people,  we  are  happy  to  say,  is  gradually 
improving  wherever  our  Church  is  established,  as  evinced  in  the  organiza- 
tion and  prosperous  state  of  our  numerous  Sabbath  and  day  schools,  libra- 
ries, etc.  Strong  efforts  are  being  made  among  us,  as  may  be  seen  in  the 
resolutions  of  our  late  General  and  Annual  Conferences,  to  raise  the  literary 
character  of  our  ministry,  especially  our  young  men  who  may  hereafter  be 
admitted,  and  the  dissemination  of  more  refined  intelligence  among  our 
people  generally. 

To  carry  these  resolutions  into  effect,  our  brethren  west  of  the  Allegheny 
Mountains  have  succeeded  in  the  purchase  of  three  hundred  and  seventy 
acres  of  land  for  the  location  of  a  manual  labor  school,  and  are  now  en- 
gaged in  raising  funds  by  subscription  throughout  the  country  to  erect  a 
suitable  building  for  that  purpose,  and  on  the  30th  day  of  September  last  a 
convention  was  held  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  as  may  be  seen  in  our 
Magazine,  No.  8,  page  277,  to  enter  into  ways  and  means  for  preparing 
our  young  men  for  the  ministry,  and  establishing  a  manual  labor  school 
east  of  the  Alleghenies. 

We  are  using  every  measure  in  our  power  to  carry  these  designs  into 
effect,  but  we  are  sorry  to  say  that  in  consequence  of  the  limited  means 
among  us  our  efforts  are  much  paralyzed.  AVe,  however,  sincerely  hope 
that  the  charity  of  the  Christian  Church  generally  will  be  turned  in  this 
direction  in  aid  of  our  cause. 

Our  book  concern  was  organized  in  the  early  establishment  of  our  Church, 
but  for  the  want  of  pecuniary  means  has  been  in  quite  a  languishing  state. 
It  is  located  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and  conducted  at  present  under  the 
supervision  of  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  our  general  book  steward,  and  Rev. 
Benjamin  Croger,  Samuel  Edwards,  Joshua  Jenkins  and  Eli  N.  Hall,  the 
committee  acting  with  him.  Its  present  stock  consists  of  hymn  books  of 
various  kinds,  disciplines,  pamphlets,  magazines,  stereotyped  plates,  etc., 
valued  at  SI, 587. 99;  the  outstanding  debts,  etc,  of  SI, 004. 88  added,  making 
a  total  amount  of  S2,502.87. 

In  the  circulation  of  intelligence  among  our  people  throughout  our 
Church  we  have  published  a  magazine,  intended  to  be  a  monthly  period- 
ical, but  for  the  want  of  pecuniary  aid  it  has  in  a  great  measure  failed  since 
it  arrived  to  the  tenth  number  of  its  second  volume.  Strong  efforts  will 
be  made  by  our  people  for  its  continuation,  as  we  are  satisfied  that  much 
good  has  already  resulted  from  its  circulation,  and  we  intend  to  raise  the  * 
tone  of  its  literary  character  in  our  future  numbers.  We  here  forward 
you  a  few  copies  of  the  several  numbers  published,  soliciting  your  atten- 
tion, and  humbly  praying  your  sanction  and  aid  in  this  particular  branch 
of  our  efforts  in  the  promotion  of  the  cause  of  Christ  among  us. 

The  cause  of  morality,  we  are  happy  to  say,  is  on  the  advance  among 
us,  particularly  in  the  establishment  of  the  numerous  temperance  and 
other  societies,  which  3-011  will  observe  in  the  perusal  of  our  magazine. 

We  sincerely  hope  that  you  will  receive  our  delegates,  whom  we  here 
authorize  to  unite  with  you  in  your  deliberations,  on  the  common  platform 
with  the  ministry  of  the  General  Christian  Church,  and  in  their  presenta- 


1840-1847. 


203 


lion  of  the  claims  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  ('lunch  of  the  I  ni- 
tcil  States  of  America  upon  your  reverend  body,  give  them  a  respectful 
hearing. 

We  are,  brethren,  your  fellow-laborers  in  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel  of 


It  was  on  the  31st  of  July  that  sixteen  ministers  of  the  Cana- 
dian District  assembled  in  the  "Queen's  Bush,"  to  set  in  order 
the  affairs  of  the  churches  committed  to  their  care.  Bishop 
Quinn,  together  with  three  elders,  four  deacons,  and  eight  preach- 
ers, constituted  the  little  band.  Hi-other  Henry  Hicks  was  the 
secretary.  Thomas  Keith  and  Henry  Smith  were  admitted  on 
probation.  David  D.  Thompson,  .Jeremiah  Taylor  and  Nelson 
Countee  were  admitted  into  full  connection.  Blessed  among  the 
dead  was  Brother  Charles  Williamson,  of  Baltimore,  Md.  He 
was  a  son  of  Charles  Williamson.  Resolutions  were  passed  re- 
quiring the  preachers  of  the  Provinces  to  preach  against  intem- 
perance, and  in  favor  of  all  the  reformatory  measures  of  the  age; 
also  requiring  communications  to  be  sent  to  the  states  to  be  pub- 
lished in  the  magazine  and  the  Pittsburg  Mystery,  informing  the 
publicof  the  peace,  prosperity  and  harmony  of  the  churches ;  and 
also  a  resolution  prohibiting  the  use, of  the  Canadian  pulpits  to 
slaveholders  and  their  apologists.  N.  C.  W.  Cannon  had  been 
stationed  on  Toronto  Circuit,  Alexander  Helmsley  on  St.  Cath- 
erine Circuit,  J  ere  Taylor  on  London  Circuit,  I.  Walker  on  Grand 
River  Circuit,  S.  Brown  on  Queen's  Bush  Circuit,  and  I.  Palmer 
at  Amherstburg.  The  total  amount  of  their  quarterage  as  salary 
amounted  to  $130.25,  and  82o.So  was  collected  for  contingent 
expenses. 

The  ministers  of  the  Ohio  churches  met  in  the  city  of  Cin- 
cinnati on  the  12th  of  September.  Bishop  Quinn,  with  thirteen 
elders,  three  deacons,  and  ten  licentiates  constituted  the  body. 
Five  were  voted  members  of  the  Conference.  These  were  E.  L. 
Ishmael,  T.  W.  Stringer,  Joseph  "McClarren,  I.  Coleman,  J.  M. 
Brown.  0.  T.  B.  Nickens  and  M.  T.  Newsum  were  secretaries. 
David  Conger,  John  Peck,  William  Herrin  and  J.  M.  Brown  were 
ordained  deacons.  The  appointments  for  the  year  past  were  as 
follows:  Pittsburg  Station  was  supplied  by  A.  R.  Green,  Cincin- 
nati Station  by  Thomas  Woodson,  Allegheny  Station  by  S.  H. 
Thompson,  Union  Circuit  by  T.  G.  Clingman,  Washington,  Pa., 


Christ. 


M.  M.  Clark, 

(  rEORGE  HOGARTH, 

Edward  C.  Africanus, 


204 


Bistort/  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


by  F.  Davis,  Captienne  by  G.  Coleman,  Zanesville  Circuit  by 

 .  Massillon  by  C.  G.  Gillespie,  Columbus  Circuit  by  , 

Chillicothe  Circuit  by  William  Newman,  Gallipolis  Circuit  by 
M.  T.  Newsom,  Hillsborough  Circuit  by  T.  Ratcliff,  LTrbana  Cir- 
cuit by  C.  Peters,  Carthagenia  Circuit  by  William  Herron,  Ham- 
ilton Circuit  by  J.  P.  Woodson,  Allegheny  Mission  by  D.  Conyore, 
Detroit  Station  by  J.  H.  Thomas.  Their  total  quarterage  amount- 
ed to  $1,550.22,  and  the  collection  for  contingent  expenses  was 
8113.20.  The  total  number  of  members  reported  by  the  Confer- 
ence District  was  three  thousand  one  hundred  and  ninety-nine, 
of  which  Pittsburg  Station  had  three  hundred  and  eighty-seven 
and  Cincinnati  had  two  hundred  and  fifteen.  These  were  then 
as  now  the  chief  stations  in  the  Ohio  District.  Chillicothe  was 
this  year  (1846)  cut  off  from  the  circuit  bearing  that  name  and 
converted  into  a  station,  and  all  the  appointments  south  of  it  were 
attached  to  the  Hillsborough  Circuit.  At  this  period  the  Colum- 
bus Circuit  consisted  of  Columbus,  Lancaster  and  Circleville ; 
but  at  this  Conference  Columbus  was  severed  from  the  circuit 
and  converted  into  a  station.  All  the  appointments  east  of 
Washington,  Pa.,  were  cut  off  from  the  Washington  Circuit  and 
converted  into  one  bearing  the  name  of  the  Williamsport  Circuit. 
After  this  Brownsville  was  attached  to  the  last  named,  and  the 
Forks  to  Uniontown  Circuit. 

The  New  York  Conference  had  passed  resolutions  disapproving 
"of  the  conduct  of  the  Western  Conferences  for  not  enforcing 
sections  4  and  8  of  our  Discipline  in  the  collection  of  debts  due 
the  book  concern ; "  also  calling  upon  them  "to  arouse  to  their 
duty  in  supporting  the  Bishops  and  paying  their  traveling  ex- 
penses." Wherefore  a  committee,  through  the  instance  of 
Brother  O.  T.  B.  Nickens,  was  appointed  "  to  inquire  how  far  the 
New  York  Conference  was  justifiable  in  passing  such  resolutions.7' 
This  committee  consisted  of  Nickens,  Byrd  Parker,  J.  Peck, 
J.  M.  Brown  and  E.  Davis,  who,  after  calmly  and  impartially 
considering  the  whole  question,  reported  to  the  effect  that  they 
could  not  deny  the  fact  that  there  had  been  neglect  on  the  part 
of  the  West  ;  that  this  neglect  was  not  altogether  justifiable,  and 
hoped  that  measures  would  be  adopted  which  would  lead  to  a 
speedy  settlement  of  Western  indebtedness.  But  at  the  same 
time  they  expressed  their  opinion  that  the  spirit  of  disapproval 
of  the  New  York  Conference  was  not  only  out  of  place,  but  also 
unjust.    They  declared  that  the  New  York  brethren  had  based 


1846-1847. 


206 


their  actions  upon  false  premises,  and  therefore  their  conclusions 
were  wrong.  They  denied  that  the  book  concern  and  Bishops 
were  embarrassed  by  the  negligence  of  the  Western  Conferences, 
and  then  they  instituted  a  comparison  by  which  they  showed 
thai  the  indebtedness  of  the  West-  did  not  amount  to  more  than 
$293.24,  while  the  Philadelphia,  New  York  and  Baltimore  Con- 
ferences owed  $1,771.52.  They  charged  the  hook  concern  with 
delinquency  in  not  supplying  the  West  with  hymn-books,  Disci- 
pline's and  magazines;  and  also  the  traveling  agent,  not  only  for 
having  visited  but  a  small  portion  of  the  West,  and  for  not 
visiting  Canada  at  all,  hut  also  for  ceasing  to  travel.  They  ad- 
mitted that  they  had  been  delinquent  in  respect  to  the  Bishop's 
salary,  hut  declared  they  had  done  well,  so  tar  as  his  ices  and 
traveling  expenses  were  concerned.  The  Conference  then  inves- 
tigated the  financial  affairs  of  the  Union  Manual  Labor  Sem- 
inary, and  appointed  a  committee  of  three,  consisting  of  A.  H. 
Green,  Thomas  Norris  and  E.  Davis,  to  revise  the  constitution  of 
this  literary  institution.  This  revised  constitution  differs  from 
the  original  only  in  detailing  the  duties  of  the  several  officers 
created  for  its  management.  A  home  missionary  society  was 
organized,  and  three  missionary  fields  laid  out,  one  hearing  the 
name  of  the  Cincinnati  Mission,  and  embracing  the  several  col- 
ored settlements  within  and  near  the  Miami  Valley,  the  towns  of 
LawrencebUrg  and  Indiana,  twenty  miles  southwest  from  Cincin- 
nati;  Richmond  on  the  Ohio,  twenty  miles  southeast;  together 
with  Batavia  and  Brown  County.  The  second  field  laid  out  was 
in  the  northern  part  of  Ohio,  and  was  designated  as  the  San- 
dusky Mission.  The  third  was  in  the  state  of  Michigan,  and 
was  called  the  Ypsilanti  Mission.  Resolutions  were  passed  in 
favor  of  the  various  moral  reforms  of  the  age,  and  three  days 
were  set  apart  for  fasting  and  humiliation,  in  order  that  the  Cod 
of  the  oppressed  might  terminate  their  degradation  and  oppres- 
sion. Who  knows  how  much  these  three  days  of  fasting  and 
prayer  had  to  do  with  the  overthrow  of  American  slavery  in 
1866,  twenty  years  subsequent.  "On  the  side  of  the  oppressor" 
there  is  always  power,  hut  it  is  mere  human  power,  consisting  in 
brute  force  sustained  by  a  strong  public  sentiment  and  unjust 
laws;  but  on  the  side  of  the  oppressed  there  is  always  the 
Almighty  arm,  which  reveals  itself  at  the  tears  and  cries  of 
their  broken  and  confiding  hearts.  Thanks  be  given  to  the 
Most   High  God   that  he  has  promised  to  "break  the  op- 


206 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


pressor  in  pieces."  When  Israel  cried,  God  came  down  to  deliver 
him. 

Brother  Henry  Adcussion  was  one  of  the  veterans  who  had 
fallen  during  this  year  (1846),  and  a  sketch  of  his  life  and  death 
was  given  at  this  session  by  Rev.  A.  R.  Green.  It  was  on  the 
10th  of  April,  after  a  long  and  severe  illness  of  nine  months, 
which  he  bore  with  Christian  fortitude,  that  he  left  this  world 
in  the  full  triumphs  of  faith  and  the  hlessed  hope  of  immortal- 
ity beyond  the  grave.  Brother  Adcussion  was  an  old  warrior 
who  enlisted  and  fought  in  the  cause  of  his  Redeemer  in  the 
Methodist  Connection  for  nearly  forty  years,  many  years  of  which 
he  labored  in  word  and  doctrine,  and  for  the  last  half-score  and 
more  he  had  labored  as  an  itinerant  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
During  this  time  he  filled  the  most  important  stations  in  the 
district,  as  well  as  some  of  the  most  humble  He  was  a  faithful 
servant  of  his  Master,  and  a  worthy  minister.  He  preached  the 
word  fearless  of  the  frowns  or  smiles  of  his  hearers,  built  up  be- 
lievers in  the  most  holy  faith,  and  persuaded  sinners  to  come  to 
Christ.  When  asked  by  one  of  his  brethren  of  his  hope,  he  gave  a 
satisfactory  evidence  of  his  peace  with  God,  and  he  then  bade  his 
friends  farewell,  and  as  long  as  he  could  be  understood  his  words 
were,  "  Glory,  glory,  glory  '•  "  and  when  his  voice  was  so  much  lost 
in  death  that  he  could  not  be  understood,  he  expressed  himself 
happy  by  a  signal  with  his  hands,  and  exchanged  the  cross  for 
the  crown — a  world  of  sorrow  and  affliction  for  one  of  joy  and 
peace  forever. 

The  minutes  of  the  Indiana  Conference  were  not  published  in 
the  magazine  for  this  year  (1846).  We  will  now  turn  the  atten- 
tion of  the  reader  to  other  phases  of  the  work  of  the  Church. 
With  the  year  1846  the  third  decade  of  the  history  of  the  A.  M. 
E.  Church  in  the  United  States  of  America  comes  to  an  end. 
In  this  last  year  there  was  nothing  produced  in  the  form  of  lit- 
erature, but  a  comparison  of  this  third  decade  with  the  second 
will  give  an  opportunity  to  see  whether  we  had  been  standing 
still,  retrograding,  or  progressing  in  this  as  well  as  in  other 
things. 

Up  to  1836  we  had  no  periodical  and  no  literature.  From  1841 
we  date  the  dawn  of  periodical  literature  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
for  it  was  then  produced  and  circulated  by  a  quarterly  magazine, 
which  was  designed  to  be  a  monthly  (but  only  came  out  about 
quarterly),  edited  by  one  of  the  ministers  of  our  Church.  The 


1846-1847. 


207 


character  of  this  literature,  however,  Lb  of  an  inferior  kind,  and 
consists  chiefly  of  letters  about  subjects  interesting  to  but  few 
if  any  outside  of  the  pales  of  the  Connection.  The  editor  him- 
self, as  evinced  by  his  leaders,  was  not  possessed  of  what  would 
he  called  to-day  a  good  common  school  education.  In  the  decade 
now  closing  we  see  the  hook  concern  assuming  a  more  tangible 
and  systematic  form  than  it  had  before  in  the  previous  decade. 

The  spirit  of  education,  especially  that  of  ministerial  educa- 
tion, now  began  to  manifest  itself  by  deeds  as  well  as  words,  for 
we  had  one  young  licentiate  at  Oberlin  College;  preparing 
for  successful  labor  in  the  territory  occupied  by  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  This  spirit  also  exhibited  itself  by  a  convention  espe- 
cially called  for  the  discussion  of  the  great  principles  of  Chris- 
tian education,  and  in  this  convention  an  educational  society 
was  formed,  with  two  auxiliaries.  The  spirit  of  progress  also 
manifested  itself  in  the  purchase  of  one  hundred  and  seventy- 
two  acres  of  land,  for  the  sum  of  $1,720,  for  the  establishment  of 
a  manual  labor  school.  Lastly,  the  Connection  had  been  con- 
vulsed from  center  to  circumference  by  the  essays  and  the  epistles 
"On  the  Education  of  the  Ministry."  Then,  in  addition  to  these 
things,  the  growth  of  the  Church  in  other  ways  can  be  seen  by 
the  comparative  statistics  which  follow:  In  1836  there  were  four 
Conference  Districts,  in  1840  there  were  six;  in  1836  there  were 
eighty-six  organized  churches,  in  1846  there  were  two  hundred 
and  ninety-eight;  there  were  seven  thousand  five  hundred  and 
ninety-four  communicants  in  1836,  and  sixteen  thousand  one 
hundred  and  ninety  in  1846;  there  were  seven  stations  in  1836, 
and  sixteen  in  1846;  the  salaries  made  a  total  of  $926.39  in  1836, 
and  $6,267.43J  in  1846,  while  for  other  things  in  this  last  year 
$963.59|  were  raised  in  addition.  In  1846  there  were  three  edu- 
cational societies  and  one  missionary  society. 

The  Conference  year  of  1847  opened  with  the  Baltimore 
churches  meeting  in  the  monumental  city  on  the  17th  of  April. 
Six  were  admitted  on  trial — Daniel  W.  Moore^  Thomas  Williams, 

  Pollard,  E.  B.  Ilazzard,  Simon  Brown,  Perry  Dobson  and 

Samuel  Thorne.  Samuel  Wilmore,  Christopher  Jones,  Aquila 
Scott  and  William  H.  Jones  were  received  into  full  connection. 
The  first  mentioned  was  also  located.  Brothers  William  H. 
.lone- and  P.  E.  B.  Ilazzard  were  ordained  deacons.  Oik;  of  the 
elders  prepared  a  List  of  questions  for  the  examination  of  those 
who  applied  for  admission  into  the  Annual  Conference,  and  as 


208 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


they  were  especially  designed  to  test  the  fitness  of  the  candidate, 
as  regarded  both  his  knowledge  of  the  law  under  which  he  would 
be  placed,  and  his  willingness  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  the 
laws  of  the  Church  generally,  they  were  adopted  by  the  Confer- 
ence. It  was  at  this  session  that  the  First  Colored  Wesleyan 
Methodist  Independent  Society  of  Baltimore,  which  had  been 
founded  by  the  talented  and  energetic  Rev.  Jacob  M.  Moore  some 
live  or  six  years  previous  to  this,  petitioned  Conference  for  ad- 
mission into  the  Connection.    This  petition  read  as  follows  : 

A  Petition  to  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the 
United  States,  now  in  session  at  Bethel  Church,  Saratoga  street,  Baltimore: 
Reverend  and  Dear  Brethren:— It  is  known  to  most  of  you  the 
serious  difficulties  to  which  we,  the  members  of  the  Zion  Chapel,  have 
been  exposed  for  the  last  twelve  months— they  have  been  brought  on 
through  the  ambitious  and  unrelenting  anxiety  of  the  Zion  Connection  to 
obtain  territory  in  the  city  of  Baltimore.  But  in  the  midst  of  all  we  yet 
stand  under  our  own  vine  and  fig  tree,  authorized  to  take  any  course  best 
adapted  to  our  welfare.  We  have  three  hundred  and  thirty-seven  mem- 
bers regular  in  attendance  to  their  classes,  and  a  Sabbath- school  containing 
one  hundred  and  fifty-two  scholars  and  seven  teachers. 

Our  official  board  is  made  up  of  eleven  leaders,  five  stewards,  nine  trus- 
tees, seven  preachers  and  two  exhorters.  And  having  learned  by  sad 
experience  that  episcopal  form  of  government  is  best  adapted  to  the  condi- 
tion of  the  people  of  color  in  the  United  States,  therefore,  we,  the  commit- 
tee authorized  by  the  male  members  of  the  church,  do  petition  your  august 
bu.lv  to  become  a  part  of  the  Connection  to  which  you  belong,  desiring  to 
obtain  the  privileges  of  all  those  who  have  come  this  way  before  us. 

We  expect  this  petition  will  meet  with  some  opposition  (and  justly, 
too,)  from  the  many  rumors  and  reports  that  have  been  in  circulation,  but 
having  confidence  in  the  wisdom  and  Christian  piety  of  those  that  compose 
your  Conference,  we  believe  that  you  will  give  us  a  fair  hearing  before  you 
come  to  any  conclusive  decision.  Therefore  we  submit  our  cause  into 
your  hands,  hoping  to  meet  with  your  approbation. 

Any  further  information  in  relation  to  the  affairs  of  the  Church  will  be 
given  by  the  undersigned,  who  are  authorized  with  discretionary  powers 
to  consummate  any  contract  that  may  prove  satisfactory  to  your  Conference. 

Yours  in  Christ, 

J.  M.  Moore,  \ 
His  ) 
Mathias  X  Colbert,  / 
mark.  [ 
His  S  Committee. 

Daniel  X  Parnell,  I 
mark.  V 
His 

Emory  X  Wolford,  / 
mark. 

Baltimore,  April  6th,  1847. 


1846-1847. 


209 


Another  document  was  also  presented  by  Brother  Moore  from 
the  Annual  Conference  of  the  First  Colored  Wesleyan  Methodist, 
Independent  Society  of  Baltimore,  which  was  signed  by  himself 
as  president  and  Emory  Wolford  as  secretary,  "by  and  in  behalf 
of  the  Connection."  It  contained  the  following  resolution: 
"That  the  preacher  in  charge  be  empowered  to  appoint  a  com- 
mittee of  three  to  act  under  his  instructions,  and  they  shall  have 
discretionary  power  to  make  any  contract,  or  adopt  any  book  of 
discipline  for  our  church  government,  and  all  articles  in  the 
constitution  that  do  not  conform  to  the  book  of  discipline 
adopted  as  above  mentioned  are  hereby  repealed."  The  commit- 
tee presenting  the  petition  was  interrogated  touching  the  tem- 
poral and  spiritual  condition  of  that  church,  and  a  committee 
was  appointed  from  the  Conference  to  investigate  the  affairs  of 
the  church  in  question.  The  result  of  this  investigation  led  them 
to  report: 

First.  That  in  our  opinion  the  Zion  Chapel  never  was  really  embodied 
in  the  African  Methodist  Zion  or  Wesleyan  Connection  in  the  United 
States.  Second.  Whereas  they  are  an  independent  body,  it  is  at  their  own 
disposal  to  join  whatever  Connection  or  denomination  they  may  think 
best.  Third.  Whereas  the  petitioners  do  solemnly  agree  to  alter  all 
articles  in  the  incorporation  aud  constitution  within  thirty  days  after  the 
embodiment,  and  to  make  valid  according  to  law,  so  as  to  conform  solely 
to  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  to  receive  any  ministers  whom 
the  Bishop  in  his  godly  judgment  may  think  proper  to  appoint,  and  to  do 
all  in  their  power  to  sustain  him  as  a  minister  of  Christ.  We  beg  leave 
to  report  further,  that  we  found  the  financial  affairs  as  represented  by 
Rev.  J.  W.  Moore  before  the  Conference. 

We  would  say  in  conclusion,  that  we  see  no  cause  why  Zion's  Chapel 
should  not  be  immediately  embodied  in  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church. 

This  was  the  finding  of  the  committee,  and  it  wras  signed  by 
J.  J.  G.  Bias,  chairman;  Willis  Nazery,  John  Jordan,  A.  W. 
Wayman.  Further  evidence  was  laid  before  the  Conference  by 
twro  of  this  committee  to  the  effect  that  claims  of  certain  persons 
against  Zion's  Chapel  had  been  repeatedly  dismissed  from  court 
as  not  legal.  This  evidence  came  in  the  form  of  a  document  from 
the  Baltimore  County  Court.  The  result  was,  that  after  discus- 
sion and  a  most  powerful  appeal  from  the  Rev.  Jacob  M.  Moore, 
the  following  resolutions  were  presented  and  accepted  without 
debate : 
14 


210 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Resolved,  1st.  That  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  on  the  part  of  this 
Conference  to  see  that  the  plan  of  embodying  "  The  First  Colored  Wesleyan 
Methodist  Church  of  Baltimore"'  be  executed  to  the  fullness  of  its  spirit 
and  letter  so  as  to  comply  in  all  respects  with  the  Discipline  and  Govern- 
ment of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of 
America. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  the  said  committee  shall  have  plenipotentiary  power 
to  employ  bgal  counsel  for  the  consummation  of  said  purpose,  to-wit:  the 
embodiment  of  the  First  Colored  AVtsleyan  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
in  the  United  States  of  America. 

D.  A.  Payne,  Darius  Stokes  and  W.  A.  Jones  were  constituted 
the  committee,  and  discharged  their  duty  by  consummating  the 
embodiment.  But  the  Zion's  Chapel  did  not  remain  long  in  the 
Connection — not  much  over  three  years.  It  was  so  much  in- 
volved in  debts  that  at  the  end  of  that  time  it  was  sold,  and  the 
man  upon  whose  ground  it  was  built,  and  who  held  a  claim  of 
ground  rent  against  it  for  more  than  $500,  with  a  mortgage  of 
over  §3,000,  bought  it  in  and  put  it  in  the  possession  of  the  Afri- 
can Methodist  Episcopal  Zion  Church. 

If  it  be  asked  wrhy  did  our  churches  in  Baltimore  suffer  this 
property  to  be  sold  to  others,  our  answer  is  that  we  could  not  do 
otherwise;  because,  first  of  all,  after  the  chapel  became  a  part  of 
the  Connection  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  for  two  successive  years, 
under  the  financiering  of  the  preachers  stationed  over  it,  the 
original  debt  was  augmented  instead  of  being  diminished.  Then, 
secondly,  during  all  this  period  our  three  other  churches  in  Bal- 
timore were  struggling  most  diligently  to  liquidate  the  heavy 
debts  that  they  had  contracted  prior  to  the  reception  of  Zion's 
Chapel  into  our  Connection.  And  thirdly,  It  was  to  save  them- 
selves from  pecuniary  ruin  that  they  were  compelled  to  let  Zion's 
Chapel  pass  out  of  their  hands  into  others.  Efforts  were  made  to 
prevent  its  sale  by  Rev.  I).  A.  Payne,  pastor  of  the  church  on 
Saratoga  street  during  the  period  mentioned,  who  at  one  time  be- 
came responsible  for  the  sum  of  8500  to  save  it  from  the  sheriffs 
hammer,  and  suffered  severely  both  in  purse  and  reputation  for 
the  friendly  effort.  Rev.  Jacob  Moore,  the  pastor  of  the  chapel 
which  thus  came  to  us  at  this  session,  remained  an  honored  and 
useful  member  of  our  Connection  until  he  felt  it  his  duty  to 
emigrate  to  Africa. 

Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  brought  forward  a  resolution  in  favor  of 
establishing  a  mission  on  the  western  coast  of  Africa  as  soon  as 
possible,    This  was  done  after  the  business  of  the  missionary 


1846-1847. 


211 


society  was  over,  and  was  sustained  by  the  unanimous  vote  of 

the  brethren. 

A  long  and  severe  debate  took  place  upon  the  manner  of 
electing  the  delegates  to  the  approaching  General  ( Jonference.  1 1 
was  questioned  whether  the  people  should  elect  their  own  dele- 
gates, or  whether  Conference  should  do  it  for  them.  Some  de- 
clared that,  as  a  matter  of  right,  the  people  ought  to  do  it;  while 
others  declared  that  such  a  procedure  would  bring  the  Church 
down  from  its  present  peaceful  and  elevated  position  to  a  level 
with  political  parties  of  the  day,  and  the  result  would  be  discord 
as  well  as  agitation,  and  even  dismemberment  of  the  Connection. 
Some  thought  that  the  rules  of  the  General  Conference  were  con- 
tradictory upon  the  subject,  while  others  deemed  them  harmo- 
nious; but  it  was  finally  decided  as  best  for  the  peace  and  wel- 
fare of  the  Church  that  the  Annual  Conferences  should  elect  the 
delegates  for  the  people.  The  delegates-elect  were  Revs.  T.  L. 
Hammonds,  Darius  Stokes,  D.  W.  Moore,  J.  M.  Moore,  Nathaniel 
Peck,  J.  Evans,  C.  Jones,  G.  James,  W.  Webb  and  W.  H.  G. 
Brown. 

A  new  mission  was  formed  from  that  portion  of  the  eastern 
shore  of  Maryland  embracing  Chestertown,  Stillpond,  Tuesburg, 
Georgetown,  Massey's  Cross  Roads,  Millingstown,  Chesterville, 
Cecil  Cross  Roads  and  Morgan's  Creek.  This  mission  Rev.  J.  M. 
Moore  was  sent  to  establish,  and  it  was  named  the  Kent  County 
Mission.  It  was  at  this  Baltimore  Conference  that  it  was  decided 
to  have  a  denominational  seal  manufactured,  and  a  committee 
was  appointed  to  accomplish  it. 

Although  there  were  a  great  many  empty  resolutions  passed  in 
favor  of  various  things  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of  the  Church, 
and  a  large  number  of  other  petitions  presented,  there  was  noth- 
ing more  of  general  interest  to  record,  except  perhaps  the  atti- 
tude of  the  Baltimore  Conference  toward  the  Philadelphia.  The 
latter  Conference  had  in  1846  entered  upon  its  record  a  vote  of 
censure  upon  the  former  for  publishing  the  minutes  of  the  Balti- 
more District.  Several  members  of  the  Baltimore  District  Con- 
ference had  entered  a  solemn  protest  against  these  acts,  and  now 
the  last-named  district  made  a  record  of  its  hearty  approval  of 
the  protest  made  by  its  members  at  the  time  mentioned,  as  car- 
rying out  their  views  and  sustaining  the  course  followed  by  that 
District  Conference,  With  this  action  the  Baltimore  Conference 
closed, 


212 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  Philadelphia  District  met  in  session  in  the  month  of  May 
following  the  Baltimore  Conference.  Sixty-four  members  wen.' 
present,  both  Bishops  being  with  the  Conference.  Patrick  Ham- 
bleton  was  received  on  probation  as  a  local  preacher,  and  J.  P.  B. 
Eddy,  J.  Hollen,  Shadrack  Blackstone,  J.  W.  Stokes,  W.  H.  Jones 
and  Perry  Gibson  were  received  into  full  connection.  H.  Davis 
and  A.  W.  Wayman  were  ordained  elders,  and  John  Butler  a 
deacon.  D.  Ware  and  Dr.  Bias  were  elected  district  book  stew- 
ards, and  thirteen  delegates  were  elected  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  1848,  in  the  persons  of  Rev.  W.  Proctor,  R.  Collins,  J. 
Woodland.  J.  Hollen,  S.  Smith,  D.  Ware,  T.  Holcomb,  T.  Black- 
ston,  Thomas  Gibbs,  J.  P.  B.  Eddy,  J.  J.  G.  Bias,  G.  McMullen 
and  H.  J.  Young. 

On  the  20th  of  May  the  funeral  sermon  of  Bishop  Edward 
Waters  was  preached,  and  immediately  afterwards  the  committee 
from  the  Baltimore  Conference,  through  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  pre- 
sented the  episcopal  seal  to  Bishop  Quinn  as  the  property  of  the 
whole  Connection.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  prefaced  it  by  becoming 
remarks,  which  were  responded  to  by  Dr.  Bias.  The  Conference 
showed  a  growing  recognition  of  the  need  of  an  intelligent  min- 
istry, and  passed  resolutions  indicative  of  that  feeling. 

On  June  25th  the  ministers  of  the  New  York  District  met  in 
the  city  of  New  York  to  hold  their  Annual  Conference.  The 
session,  over  which  Bishop  Quinn  presided,  was  made  a  secret 
one.  T.  M.  D.  Ward.  G.  II.  Washington  and  W.  Harman  were 
admitted  on  trial,  together  with  J.  P.  Turner,  Edward  Johnson 
and  J.  L.  Smith.  L.  Tillmon,  D.  Dorrell,  John  Elymore  and  J. 
Stanford  were  admitted  into  full  connection.  E.  Africanus,  J. 
Hyatt,  N.  C.  B.  Thomas  and  L.  Tillmon  were  ordained  elders. 
The  following  named  brethren  were  elected  delegates  to  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  of  1848:  Rev.  S.  Edwards,  R.  Parker,  J.  Jenkins, 
G.  Weir  and  B.  Croger.  Conference  also  adopted  measures  to 
raise  the  salary  and  contingent  expenses  of  the  Bishop,  and  also 
called  upon  the  Western  Conferences  to  do  their  duty  towards 
the  Bishop.  Resolutions  were  adopted  to  enforce  the  "  two-cent" 
collections  on  behalf  of  the  magazine.  A  committee  was  ap- 
pointed to  draft  a  constitution  for  a  Sunday-school  Union  to  be 
entitled  the  "Allen  Sunday-schooJ  Union.''  These  measures,  with 
the  appointment  of  a  committee  to  prepare  an  obituary  notice  of 
the  life  and  death  of  Bishop  Waters,  made  up  the  important 
work  of  the  Conference. 


1846-1847. 


213 


The  Canadian  churches  held  their  Annual  Conference  for  this 
year  in  whal  was  called  " The  Queen's  Bush,"  in  Peel  township, 
where  the  ministry  assembled  on  the  30th  of  -July.  Bishop 
Quinn  opened  with  an  address.  Thomas  Keeth  and  Henry 
Smith  were  received  on  trial,  and  David  I).  Thompson,  Nelson 
Countee  and  Jeremiah  Taylor  into  full  connection.  The  closing 
of  the  church  in  Toronto  against  its  elder,  Rev.  N.  C.  W.  Cannon, 
was  laid  before  tins  body,  and  the  opinion  was  rendered  adverse- 
ly to  the  trustee's  for  such  action  as  "unjust  and  cruel  in  the 
extreme."  Brothers  Dorsey,  Henson,  Smith  and  Curtis  were 
condemned  for  retaining  their  certificates  after  they  had  with- 
drawn from  the  Connection,  and  when  they  had  been  demanded 
of  them  "by  the  proper  authorities."  One  resolution  passed  by 
the  Conference  was  strictly  in  keeping  with  the  spirit  of  freedom 
which  obtained  in  Canada.  It  prohibited  the  use  of  the  pulpits 
to  sla  veholders. 

The  meeting  of  the  pastors  of  the  Ohio  churches  was  held  in 
Zanesville,  0.,  on  the  16th  of  October.  Rev.  Wm.  Morgan,  a 
deacon  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  was  received  into  full  fellowship, 
and  Peter  Gardner,  Levin  Gross,  Robert  Johnson  and  David 
Wheelbanks  were  received  on  trial.  John  P.  Woodson,  H.  C. 
Gillespie,  E.  Davis  and  W.  Herrcn  were  received  into  full  con- 
nection as  itinerants,  with  E.  Wilkins  as  a  local  preacher.  Levin 
Gross,  E.  Davis,  John  M.  Brown  and  William  Morgan  were 
ordained  elders,  and  David  Smith  and  John  M.  Brown  were 
located.  Rev.  Thomas  Woodson  was  numbered  among  those 
who  sleep  in  Jesus.  His  death  occurred  October  3d,  1846, 
when  he  was  in  the  thirty-fifth  year  of  his  age.  The  secretary 
of  the  Conference  adds  to  the  record  that  "the  deceased  had  been 
for  many  years  a  devout  servant  of  God,  and  labored  extensively 
as  a  local  preacher,  leaving  all  and  going  far  and  near  to  cry  to 
sinners,  'Behold  the  Lamb!'"  He  also  says:  "As  a  minister, 
he  was  fearless  of  the  scoffs  or  frowns  of  the  world;  he  proclaimed 
the  truth  of  the  Gospel,  and  when  disease  had  worn  away  his 
constitution,  and  affliction  had  well  nigh  disrobed  his  tabernacle, 
he  would  say,  'All  I  desire  is,  the  Lord's  will  be  done,  and  our 
cause  go  forward  until  the  millions  who  are  now  groaning  under 
the  iron  hand  of  oppression  shall  be  free,  and  the  kingdom  of 
our  Lord  prevail  over  all  the  earth.' "  Here  was  a  dying  saint 
heai  ing  his  testimony  against  the  crimes  of  a  so-called  Christian 
republic — a  republic  calling  itself  the  "land  of  the  free  and  the 


214 


History  oj  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


home  of  the  brave."  His  dying  desire  was  for  the  overthrow  of 
the  hand  of  oppression.  God  has  heard  that  prayer,  and  broken 
is  the  iron  hand  of  the  oppressor,  though  he  still  controls  the 
South  without  fear  of  punishment  at  the  hands  of  an  American 
government. 

Brother  Fayette  Davis  was  another  who  departed  this  life  in  1847. 
He  died  March  28th,  in  the  thirty-eighth  year  of  his  age.  We  are 
told  that  he  "espoused  the  cause  of  Christianity  when  a  youth, 
and  the  last  thirteen  years  of  his  life  was  spent  in  the  cause  of 
his  Master  as  an  itinerant  preacher  in  this  Connection."  Such 
was  his  confidence  in  that  Saviour  whom  he  had  so  long  obeyed, 
that  when  death  appeared  lie  could  say  to  his  friends,  "  I  have  been 
looking  for  this  for  many  years.  I  am  ready,  I  am  willing  to  go 
and  reap  my  reward."  Both  of  these  brethren  were  members  of 
the  General  Conference  of  1844,  and  each  seemed  to  promise  a 
long  life,  but  the  Lord  knew  best.  Two  others  are  upon  the  death 
list  of  the  year — David  Conyore  and  George  Boler.  The  former 
died  on  the  30th  of  April,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five  years.  Forty 
odd  years  of  his  life  had  been  spent  under  the  banner  of  Christ. 
"  For  many  years,  although  oppressed  by  cruel  taskmasters,  he 
labored  with  his  brethren  in  word  and  doctrine.  Through  the 
providence  of  God  he  at  Length  bought  his  time,  after  having 
spent  near  threescore  years  in  Labor  for  his  oppressors.  Although 
his  bod}'  began  to  sink  with  age,  and  his  beard  to  silver  with 
frosts  of  many  winters,  yet,  when  be  found  the  chains  off  his 
limbs,  such  was  the  zeal  he  felt  for  the  cause  of  his  Redeemer 
that  he  labored  much  as  a  local  preacher,  and  was  ready  to  go  far 
or  near  to  do  his  duty.  The  last  two  years  of  his  life  he  felt  it 
his  duty  to  engage  all  his  time  in  the  itinerancy,  and  was  appointed 
to  several  missions."  When  advised  to  cease  traveling,  he  said,  "  My 
appointments  are  out  and  they  must  be  filled.  I  never  intend  to 
stop,  but  die  in  the  field."  Of  Rev.  George  Boler  it  is  written: 
"He  departed  this  life  on  the  3d  of  October,  1847,  at  Pittsburg, 
Pa.,  in  the  sixtieth  year  of  his  age,  after  a  severe  illness  of  some 
weeks.  Brother  Boler  was  one  of  the  first  pioneers  in  the  Con- 
nection in  the  western  field,  and  traveled  many  years  in  the 
itinerancy,  and  labored  extensively  for  the  increase  of  Zion.  He 
embarked  in  this  enterprise  in  the  day  of  small  things,  as  early 
as  1822,  and  he  stands  in  the  field  as  a  regular  minister  of  the 
itinerancy.  When  ministers  had  to  travel  from  the  West  to 
Baltimore  and  Philadelphia  to  receive  their  appointments,  year 


184G-1847. 


after  year,  Brother  Holer  was  in  the  ranks  As  to  his 

Christian  career,  he  had  been  a  follower  of  the  Saviour  for  many 
years  previous  to  his  ministry.  About  forty  years  of  his  Life  he 
spent  in  the  service  of  his  God,  and  as  he  often  said,  'although 
weak  and  feeble  have  been  my  efforts,  yet  1  feel  that  the  Lord 
has  owned  and  blessed  my  Labors— to  Him  be  the  glory  and  the 
honor  in  time  and  eternity/  The  latter  years  of  his  Life  he  spent 
as  a  local  preacher,  yet  was  willing  at  any  time  to  mount  his 
horse  and  brook  the  difficulties  of  an  itinerant  minister. 

He  died  in  peace  with  God  and  man, 
And  left  the  world  and  sin  behind.'  " 

There  were  five  funeral  sermons  preached  at  this  session  of  the 
Ohio  Annual  Conference;  one  on  the  death  of  Bishop  Waters  by 
Rev.  Thomas  Lawrence,  those  of  Brothers  Woodson  and  Davis 
by  Rev.  A.  R.  Green,  and  those  of  Brothers  Conyore  and  Boler 
by  Rev.  David  Smith. 

The  society  of  people  established  by  David  Wheelbanks  peti- 
tioned Conference  to  receive  them  into  our  Connection.  This 
petition  was  granted,  and  Brother  Wheelbanks  was  sent  to  take  the 
pastoral  charge  of  them.  He  was  also  received  into  the  itinerancy. 
Eight  local  preachers  were  elected  delegates  to  the  ensuing  Gen- 
eral Conference:  0.  T.  B.  Nickens,  Wesley  Roberts,  John  Peck, 
Xenophon  Lee,  Jerret  Jenkins,  David  Smith,  William  Morgan 
and  John  M.  Brown. 

A  committee  of  three,  consisting  of  A.  R.  Green,  George  Cole- 
man and  John  M.  Brown,  were  appointed  to  prepare  and  publish 
two  neat  volumes  of  the  lives  and  deaths  of  the  several  members 
of  our  Church. 

The  Union  Seminary  next  demanded  the  attention  of  the  Con- 
ference. To  promote  its  interest,  a  committee  wras  appointed  to 
procure  the  services  of  a  lawyer  for  the  purpose  of  drafting  a  peti- 
tion to  the  Legislature  of  Ohio  to  give  a  charter;  another  was  ap- 
pointed to  draft  a  course  of  studies ;  and  a  third  was  chosen  to  have 
the  doings  of  the  Conference  in  behalf  of  the  Seminary  published  in 
the  Pennsylvania  Freeman.  They  also  resolved  to  appoint  a  clergy- 
man to  open  the  Seminary  as  early  as  possible — this  clergyman  was 
to  be  the  pastor  of  the  station  at  Columbus  at  the  same  time.  The 
object  of  this  two-fold  appointment  was  to  furnish  a  support  for 
the  teaching  without  creating  an  extra  expense.  The  debt  of  the 
Conference  for  the  farm  at  this  time  was  $595.    Another  act  of  the 


216 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Conference  was  to  authorize  the  board  of  trustees  to  set  apart  ten 
acres  of  this  farm,  and  divide  the  same  into  lots  of  a  suitable 
size  to  be  leased  or  sold  to  any  one  who  might  wish  to  settle 
around  the  institution  to  educate  their  children — the  rent  or 
lease  to  constitute  a  fund  for  the  support  of  the  Seminary.  This 
would  have  been  a  wise  step  for  any  institution  except  that  of 
poor  people  like  our  own,  as  may  be  seen.  The  property  was 
thirteen  or  fourteen  miles  from  the  nearest  town,  Columbus,  O., 
and  was  located  in  the  midst  of  thrifty  white  farmers.  To  live 
around  an  institution  of  learning  at  such  a  distance  from  em- 
ployment for  the  purpose  of  educating  a  family  made  it  necessary 
for  that  family  to  be  in  easy,  if  not  entirely  independent  circum- 
stances, neither  of  which  conditions  could  be  found  among  our 
people  at  that  time.  Therefore  the  resolution  of  the  Conference 
to  attempt  what  was  determined  upon  was  both  unwise  and  im- 
practicable, and  the  plan  utterly  failed.  The  Conference  also 
resolved  to  create  a  ministerial  fund  by  a  personal  tax  of  two  per 
cent,  on  their  salary  for  the  purpose  of  assisting  in  the  education 
of  the  children  of  deceased  itinerants.  It  was  an  excellent  reso- 
lution had  it  been  put  into  execution.  That  the  Conference  felt 
deeply  the  charges  brought  against  the  Western  Conferences  at 
the  New  York  Annual  Conference  of  1846  is  evident  by  the  fol- 
lowing resolution : 

That  this  Conference  prefer  a  charge  against  the  New  York  Conference 
for  the  unjustifiable  charges  against  the  Western  Conference,  published  in 
the  minutes  of  the  New  York  Annual  Conference  of  1846.  And  further- 
more, we  prefer  charges  against  the  general  book  steward  for  neglect  of 
duty,  in  consequence  of  which  we  in  the  West  have  been  greatly  paralyzed 
in  our  efforts  to  make  the  public  more  generally  acquainted  with  the 
Connection.  We  have  in  a  number  of  cases  received  the  people's  money 
for  the  magazine,  and  forwarded  it,  and  he  has  failed  to  send  it  according 
to  his  obligation.  Therefore  we  have  no  encouragement  to  solicit  subscrib- 
ers to  the  magazine,  notwithstanding  it  is  the  only  public  organ  of  the 
Connection. 

Thus  the  Ohio  Conference  explains  its  position  officially,  as  we 
have  seen  it  already  explained  in  the  said  New  York  Conference, 
by  the  committee  appointed  "to  inquire  how  far  the  New  York 
Conference  was  justifiable  in  passing  such  resolutions." 


CHAPTER  XX. 


THE  GENERAL  CONFERENCE  OF  1848. 

Eighth  General  Conference—  Bishop  Quinn's  Episcopal  Address — A  Third 
Bishop— Monthly  Maga/ine  to  bo  Made  a  Quarterly— The  Christian 
Herald— Book  Concern  Moved  to  Pittsburg—  A  Committee  to  Purchase 
the  "Mystery  "—A  Plan  for  Common  Schools— Important  Amendments 
to  the  Discipline — Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  Appointed  Historiographer  of  the 
Church — Consecration  of  Bethel,  Baltimore,  in  1848. 

nPHIS  was  the  Eighth  General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
|  Church.  It  was  opened  on  Monday,  the  1st  of  May,  in  the 
city  of  Philadelphia.  Present  at  that  hour  were  fifty-five 
ministers,  at  the  head  of  whom  stood  Bishop  William  Paul  Quinn. 
Rev.  M.  M.  Clark,  Rev.  A.  W.  Wayman  and  Rev.  Edward  Davis 
were  made  secretaries.  Ten  committees  were  appointed — on  the 
book  concern,  the  presiding  elder  question,  the  itinerancy  and  lo- 
cality, the  episcopacy,  education,  home  and  foreign  missions,  on 
temperance,  on  boundaries,  on  expenses  of  delegates,  on  altera- 
tion and  amendment  of  the  discipline.  The  Conference  sermon 
was  preached  by  the  Rev.  Byrd  Parker,  and  Bishop  Quinn  deliv- 
ered the  address  of  the  episcopal  office.  It  is  the  first  in  the 
history  of  our  Church  that  appears  in  full  on  the  journals.  Hith- 
erto the  secretaries  had  only  alluded  to  the  Bishop's  address, 
from  which  it  is  just  to  infer  that  this  is  the  first  written  address 
ever  presented  by  a  Bishop  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  its  General 
Conference,  hence  it  marks  a  new  phase  in  our  history.  It 
abounds  with  judicious  and  useful  suggestions.  He  was  not 
alone  in  his  views  respecting  the  necessity  and  propriety  of  the 
presiding  eldership,  though  it  was  the  judgment  of  the  majority 
that  the  office  was  not  needed,  while  some  thought  it  would  work 
injuriously,  and  many  younger  brethren  strenuously  opposed  it 
on  the  ground  that  they  considered  the  measure  of  an  oppressive 
tendency.  Others  considered  it  perfectly  useless  or  too  expensive. 
It  will  be  seen,  however,  that  a  very  large  minority  favored  it. 
The  committee  reported  in  favor  of  adopting  that  office  as  a  part 
of  our  system.  They  sustained  their  report  by  the  following 
reasons : 

1st.  That  there  were  many  difficulties  occurring  on  circuits  and 

(217) 


218 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


in  stations  which  could  not  he  satisfactorily  settled  without  the 
agency  of  presiding  elders,  as  is  attested  by  the  experience  and 
observation  of  many. 

2d.  That  the  episcopacy  needed  the  agency  of  presiding  elders 
in  order  that  they  might  always  be  furnished  with  a  full  and  ex- 
haustive account  of  the  state  of  all  the  churches  in  their  absence. 

3d.  That  the  episcopacy  might  always  be  able  to  make  out 
appointments  intelligently,  and  to  the  highest  satisfaction  of  the 
Church. 

4th.  That  the  presiding  eldership  will  prevent  the  alleged 
necessity  of  premature  ordinations,  as  well  as  the  appointment 
of  young  men  to  the  charge  of  whole  circuits  and  stations  who 
were  mere  licentiates  or  deacons,  and  therefore  not  fully  qualified 
for  the  able  and  efficient  discharge  of  the  whole  routine  of  duties 
incumbent  upon  a  minister  in  charge. 

5th.  That  there  had  never  been  a  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
of  any  extent  which  had  not  the  office  of  presiding  or  ruling 
elders  in  name  or  effect. 

This  report  elicited  a  very  animated  and  stubborn  discussion. 
It  was  finally  put  and  negatived  by  a  vote  of  48  against  33. 

The  action  of  the  General  Conference  on  Missions  was  as  fol- 
lows:  The  Constitution  and  By-laws  of  the  Society  which  was 
organized  in  1844  were  re-adopted.  The  following  report  of  the 
committee  was  also  adopted:  "  The  members  of  the  com- 
mittee beg  leave  to  say  that,  in  the  absence  of  any  general  report, 
either  from  the  parent  or  district  societies,  thus  depriving  them 
of  the  opportunity  of  properly  examining  the  field  of  labor,  they 
have  found  themselves  surrounded  with  difficulties  insurmount- 
able. We  recommend  a  change  in  the  plan  of  general  ad- 
ministration in  our  missionary  enterprise,  believing,  as  we  do, 
that  the  failure  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  officers  of  the  law,  and 
not  to  the  law  itself.  That  in  order  to  place  this  institution  in  a 
high  and  flourishing  condition,  so  as  to  secure  the  greatest  amount 
of  good  to  the  greatest  number,  we  recommend  that  there  be  an 
annual  report  made  of  all  the  general  and  local  operations  of  all 
the  district  Societies,  setting  forth  the  true  condition  and  extent 
of  the  missionary  enterprise.  And  Ave  further  recommend  that 
there  be  a  missionary  sermon  delivered  at  each  of  the  Annual 
Conferences,  and  a  collection  taken  up  to  aid  in  the  aforesaid 
object.  Moreover,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  all  the  officers  of  this 
Society  fairly  and  faithfully  to  discharge  all  their  duties.  And 


The  General  Conference  of  1848. 


'21!) 


furthermore,  we  recommend  thai  there  be  a  sera   preached 

next  Thursday,  and  a  collection  taken  to  aid  the  missionary  fund." 

The  committee  on  the  subject  of  the  Episcopacy  reported  thai 
"  the  state  of  the  churches  throughoul  the  Connection  was  in  a 
healthy  and  thriving  condition;"  that  there  was  a  "considerable 
increase  of  circuits,  stations  and  missions  in  every  district;"  and 
thai  they  "considered  it  important  to  elect  another  Bishop  to  aid 
in  the  arduous  and  glorious  enterprise  of  our  growing  Church." 
They  also  recommended  the  consideration  of  a  third  Bishop. 
The  last  portion  of  the  report  was  indefinitely  postponed.  There 
was  much  caucusing  in  regard  to  the  matter  of  electing  another 
Bishop.  Some  proposed  one  man,  others  another ;  but  the  man 
upon  whom  many  eyes  were  turned  on  account  of  his  splendid 
talents  and  great  powers  of  del  cite,  as  well  as  his  pulpit  eloquence, 
was  Rev.  Byrd  Parker.  But  at  Last  the  unanimous  conclusion 
was  that  they  were  not  prepared  to  act  at  that  time  upon  such  an 
i  in  port  ant  question. 

The  General  Conference  decreed  that  there  should  be  a  general 
book  depository  in  each  Conference  district,  at  the  head  of  which 
should  be  placed  its  district  hook  steward.  The  general  hook 
steward,  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  presented  his  report,  whereupon 
it  was  seen  that  $393.87  worth  of  stock  had  been  disposed  of,  and 
an  estimate  of  stock  on  hand,  including  stereotype  plates,  was 
placed  at  $958.99,  with  $109. 70  in  cash  balance  in  hand.  Bills  of 
considerable  amount  were  standing  against  members  of  the  Con- 
ference. The  committee  that  investigated  the  report  of  the  gen- 
ral  hook  steward  also  recommended  the  propriety  of  making 
arrangements  for  depositing  in  the  hands  of  the  newly-elected 
general  book  steward  all  the  property  of  the  concern,  in  order 
that  he  might  engage  in  the  duties  of  his  office  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. The  successor  of  Re'v.  G.  Hogarth,  who  had  filled  the  office 
for  twelve  years,  was  Rev.  Augustus  R.  Green,  who  was  elected 
to  fill  that  office  on  the  13th  of  May,  1848.  At  the  instance  of 
Rev.  Thomas  Lawrence,  the  monthly  magazine  was  ordered  to  he 
made  a  quarterly,  and  a  weekly  paper  was  also  ordered  to  he  print- 
ed, to  bear  the  title  of  The  Christian  Ifcrafrf,  which  was  given  at 
the  instance  of  Rev;  Dr.  J.  J.  (J.  Bias  and  Rev.  G.  Stokes.  Rev. 
A.  R.  Green  was  also  to  be  the  editor  of  this  our  new  Church 
organ,  with  assistant  corresponding  editors.  He  was  deprived  of 
early  advantages  for  intellectual  culture  of  a  high  order,  but  he 
was  possessed  of  great  energy  of  character  and  a  desire  for  in- 


220 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


formation,  and  made  use  of  many  opportunities  to  enlarge  Ids 
store  of  useful  knowledge.  His  literary  efforts,  laid  before  the 
public  in  several  forms,  show  how  far  he  succeeded  in  scholarship 
and  as  an  editor.  In  1845  he  published  a  pamphlet  entitled  "A 
Treatise  on  the  Episcopacy  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,"  "Duty  of 
Parents  and  Churches  to  Baptized  Children."  "An  Examination 
of  the  Mother  Church."  The  book  concern  was  decreed  to  be 
removed  from  New  York  to  Pittsburg,  and  a  committee  was  ap- 
pointed to  purchase  the  paper  called  The  Mystery%  with  the  press, 
types  and  fixtures. 

A  plan  for  common  school-,  drafted  by  M.  M.  Clark,  was 
adopted.  The  pastor  of  every  church  was  empowered  to  establish 
a  high  school  wherever  practicable,  provided  that  the  Annual 
Conference  approved  and  sanctioned  such  a  measure  in  their 
respective  districts.  The  four  years  course  adopted  at  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  of  1844  was  revised  and  recommended  to  the 
young  ministers,  who  were  required  to  make  themselves  proficient 
or  fail  of  advancement  to  holy  orders. 

Borne  important  amendments  were  made  to  the  Discipline  and 
government.  First,  relating  to  the  episcopacy,  respecting  the 
trial  of  a  Bishop,  which  was  an  improvement  on  the  former 
method — not  so  cumbrous,  and  also  swifter  in  its  execution.  His 
power  was  increased,  and  his  support  regulated.  The  power  of 
the  trustees  was  defined  and  limited.  There  was  peculiar  need 
of  such  rules  as  the  last  at  this  time,  as  will  be  seen  later  on, 
when  we  come  to  speak  of  the  Philadelphia  Church.  The  trus- 
tees had  used  the  power  originally  given  to  that  church  for  the 
purpose  of  protecting  it  against  the  oppression  of  certain  persons, 
to  become  in  turn  the  oppressors  both  of  the  ministry  and  the 
people,  and  had  produced  in  many  sections  of  our  Connection 
the  most  violent  commotions  and  riots,  ending  in  several  in- 
stances in  bloodshed  and  the  rending  asunder  of  whole  congre- 
gations. It  was  also  made  the  duty  of  exhorters  to  employ  their 
talents  and  time  in  the  Sabbath-schools  as  teachers;  also  to  lead 
and  manage  the  weekly  prayer-meetings.  A  licensed  local 
preacher  was  also  made  eligible  to  the  orders  of  a  deacon  after 
he  had  preached  four  years,  and  under  the  request  of  the  Church 
through  the  Quarterly  Conference.  It  was  also  decreed  that  "if 
any  minister,  preacher,  exhorter,  or  member  of  our  Society,  who 
has  been  lawfully  married  and  shall  separate  and  marry  again 
while  the  other  is  living,  he  or  she  shall  be  expelled,  and  shall 


The  General  Conference  of  1848. 


221 


aever  be  readmitted  during  the  Life-time  of  the  two  parties.  And 
any  minister  who  Bhall  marry  such  knowingly  shall  forfeit  his 
standing  in  our  Connection."  An  alteration  was  also  made  in 
section  1.  page  238,  of  the  Discipline  of  ISM,  concerning  the 
raising  of  the  salaries  of  the  pastors.  The  two-cent  money  at 
each  Annual  Conference  was  also  to  be  divided — one-half  to  be 
retained  in  the  district  to  aid  distressed  itinerant,  superannuated 
and  supernumerary  preachers,  and  Bishops'  salaries;  the  other 
half  to  he  sent  to  the  general  hook  steward  to  aid  the  hook  con- 
cern. All  of  these  alterations  and  amendments  were  needed, 
and  would  have  been  beneficial  in  their  results,  if  they  had  been 
mildly  and  uniformly  enforced. 

Rev.  John  Boggs,  one  of  the  pioneer  preachers,  died  on  the 
morning  of  the  eleventh  day  of  the  session.  Proper  resolutions 
of  respect  were  passed,  and  General  Conference  adjourned  until 
the  following  day.  "For  more  than  thirty  years  he  had  been 
calling  sinners  to  repentance,  and  during  all  that  time  he  main- 
tained an  unspotted  character,"  is  what  was  said  of  him,  and  the 
individual  testimony  of  the  writer  may  be  added  to  this. 
Though  Brother  Boggs  had  been  brought  up  without  so  much  as 
a  common  school  education,  and  therefore  never  made  much 
impression  in  his  pulpit  efforts,  yet  so  deep  and  consistent  was 
his  piety  that  every  oik;  who  knew  him  confided  in  his  honesty 
and  was  affected  by  his  zeal.  Though  far  advanced  in  life,  when 
the  spirit  of  learning  seized  the  ministry,  he  fell  in  with  the 
enthusiasm  of  the  times  and  commenced  the  study  of  the  Eng- 
lish grammar,  and  became  so  animated  with  his  success  that  he 
had  been  known  to  stop  in  the  midst  of  his  sermon  and  parse  a 
simple  sentence.  His  Labors  were  not  confined  to  the  East,  but 
were  extended  to  nearly  five  hundred  miles  beyond  the  western 
spur  of  the  Alleghenies.  There  are  those  in  the  vicinity  of  Cin- 
cinnati to-day  who  may  remember  his  labors  with  emotions  of 
delight. 

Thus  we  have  summed  up  the  principal  incidents  and  doings 
of  the  General  Conference  of  1848,  to  which  we  may  add  that 
1).  A.  Payne  was  appointed  the  historiographer  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  at  this  session. 

In  this  year  the  Philadelphia  ministry  met  in  Annual  Confer- 
ence outside  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia  for  the  first  time  in 
thirty-two  years,  and  conducted  their  deliberations  in  the  town 
of  Trenton,  N.  J.,  commencing  on  the  3d  of  June.    The  docu- 


•I'll 


History  of  the  A.  M.  K.  Church. 


ments  laid  before  it  were  almost  as  numerous  as  those  presented 
to  the  General  Conference,  but  too  particular  and  local  to  be  of 
general  interest.  Brothers  William  Catto,  A.  C.  Crippen,  T.  C. 
Oliver,  J.  J.  G.  Bias  and  H.  C.  Young  were  ordained  deacons. 
A  young  man  from  the  British  West  Indies,  who  had  previously 
connected  himself  with  the  Zion's  Connection,  by  the  name  of 
Edward  E.  Garey,  was  among  those  who  were  received  into  the 
itinerant  service  at  this  time,  and  was  immediately  transferred 
by  the  Bishop  to  the  Ohio  Conference  as  pastor  of  the  Cincinnati 
station.  He  was  a  man  of  liberal  education,  with  superior  natu- 
ral endowments  and  a  pleasing  address.  As  a  preacher  he  pos- 
sessed an  amount  of  eloquence  rarely  found,  and  a  style  so  pol- 
ished as  to  fit  him  for  the  most  refined  audience  in  the  Union; 
hut  his  career  was  very  short,  and  the  blazing  meteor  went  out 
into  obscure  darkness. 

The  Society  of  Methodists  in  New  Orleans  sent  the  Indiana 
Conference  this  year  a  petition  praying  it  to  take  into  considera- 
tion the  propriety  of  establishing  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  that 
city.  The  prayer  was  granted,  and  Brother  Charles  Doughty, 
who  brought  it,  himself  a  native  Louisianian  and  a  licentiate  in 
the  Methodist  Church,  South,  was  ordained  a  deacon  and  sent 
back  to  take  the  pastoral  charge  of  the  "  Louisiana  Mission."* 

In  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference  an  act  of  incorporation  from 
the  state  of  Ohio  was  reported  in  behalf  of  Union  Seminary,  and 
a  sawmill  was  ordered  to  be  erected  on  the  farm.  Rev.  Abram 
D.  Lewis,  a  local  preacher  in  the  Pittsburg  Station,  was  num- 
bered among  the  dead.  He  was  among  the  earliest  members  of 
that  church,  and  for  eighteen  years  had  filled  the  office  of  a 
deacon — as  exemplary  in  his  daily  conduct  as  he  was  devout  in 
his  profession,  a  very  impressive  speaker,  a  faithful  friend  and 
an  affectionate  husband  and  father. 

The  New  York  and  Canadian  churches  were  unmarked  by  any 
unusual  interest  this  year. 

As  we  glance  at  the  literature  of  the  year  we  find  the  Christian 
Herald  absorbing  the  interest,  and  communications  are  noted 
from  the  pens  of  the  editor  and  assistants,  A.  K.  Green  and  Revs. 
J.  M.  Brown  and  A.  W.  Wayman.    Then,  too,  the  forms  for  lay- 

*  This  mission  is  now  St.  James'  Church,  the  largest  congregation  we 
have  in  the  state,  though  it  has  given  the  Church  an  immense  amount  of 
trouble  on  account  of  rebellious  leaders — those  anxious  to  rule  but  unwil- 
ling to  he  ruled. 


The  General  Conference  of  1848.  228 

ing  corner-stones  and  dedicating  churches  were  established  this 
year.  At  the  close  of  the  General  Conference  the  necessity  of 
such  forms  was  shown,  but  too  Late  for  the  work  to  be  done  at 
that  session,  and  a  committee  of  three  was  appointed  to  do  the 
work,  and  Instructed  to  send  the  result  of  their  labors  to  the 
genera]  book  steward  for  insertion  in  the  Book  of  Discipline, 
thenceforward  to  be  used  as  the  established  forms.  This  commit- 
tee consisted  of  J.  M.  Brown,  Byrd  Parker  and  I).  A.  Payne.  The 
committee,  after  having  examined  the  forms  used  by  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church  and  those  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran 
Church,  resolved  to  strike  out  a  new  one  for  ours,  and  in  this 
effort  they  labored  more  to  be  scriptural  than  to  be  original,  be- 
lieving that  in  all  the  service  of  religion  man  ought  to  hide  him- 
self beneath  the  glorious  manifestation  of  the  God-head  as  made 
in  his  written  word.  The  whole  of  the  standing  prayer  follow- 
ing the  prayer  of  Solomon  is  original.  The  form  for  laying 
corner-stones  was  copied  from  the  Liturgy  of  the  Evangelical 
Lutheran  Church. 

For  many  years  prior  to  1848  there  was  a  struggle  for  suprem- 
acy between  the  trustees  and  pastors  of  many  churches  in  our 
Connection.  This  struggle  originated  in  Philadelphia,  and  ex- 
tended itself  to  Baltimore,  Washington  and  many  other  places. 
These  struggles,  however,  did  not  assume  an  open  and  violent 
form  till  the  year  mentioned,  when  it  began  almost  simultane- 
ously in  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore,  shaking  those  churches 
with  the  violence  of  an  earthquake,  and  causing  the  shock  to  he 
felt  from  "  Dan  to  Beersheba."  The  printed  historical  documents 
which  resulted  from  the  trial  and  the  decision  of  the  civil  courts 
show  that  the  trustees  of  Bethel  Church,  Philadelphia,  had  been 
impeached  and  tried  for  certain  offenses  by  the  Rev.  John  ('Or- 
nish, the  elder  who  was  then  stationed  in  that  church.  The 
charges  were  tabled  in  the  month  of  June.  The  impeached 
trustees,  anticipating  the  result,  called  a  meeting  in  October  (the 
4th).  Those  present  were  Benjamin  Miller,  Benjamin  Johnson, 
Isaac  Lisby,  George  Miller,  Joseph  Le  Count,  William  Lee  and 
Joel  Ware.    In  this  meeting  they  passed  resolutions  to  this  effect: 

Resolved,  That  the  resolutions  and  proceedings  of  receiving  the  Rev. 
John  Cornish  as  elder  or  minister  in  charge,  on  the  14th  of  June,  1848,  be 
and  they  are  hereby  rescinded. 

Resolved,  That  there  is  no  minister  in  charge  of  Bethel  Church  accord- 
ing to  its  charter. 


224 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  for  the  trustees,  ministers,  exhorters  and 
leaders  of  Bethel  to  choose  and  elect  one  from  their  own  body  as  a  presid- 
ing minister  in  Bethel  Church. 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  to  confer  with  the 
ministers,  exhorters  and  leaders  of  Bethel  Church,  for  the  purpose  of 
calling  a  constitutional  meeting  to  select  a  presiding  minister  from  their 
own  body. 

Resolved,  That  Isaac  Lisby,  Benjamin  Johnson  and  Joel  Ware  be  that 
committee. 

The  "constitutional  meeting"  was  called,  and  a  deacon  by  the 
name  of  Rev.  Shadrack  Bassett  elected  for  the  pastorate  of  Bethel. 
This  was  done  on  the  11th  of  October,  seven  days  after  their 
first  revolutionary  meeting.  Those  who  constituted  this  con- 
stitutional meeting  were  nineteen  in  number,  while  the  official 
board  of  the  church  at  that  #date  amounted  to  nearly  one 
hundred.* 

On  the  loth  of  October  the  committee  to  whom  the  original 
impeachment  was  submitted  sent  each  of  the  trustees  the  follow- 
ing notice: 

Sir: — The  committee  to  hear  and  try  the  complaint  preferred  against 
you  as  a  member  and  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  African  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia  by  John  I).  Oliver,  have  found 
you  guilty  of  the  first,  second,  third  and  sixth  charges  in  said  complaint. 
You  are  hereby  notified  that,  by  virtue  of  the  authority  given  me  by  the 
Articles  of  Association  and  Discipline  of  the  said  Church,  I  do  hereby 
expel  you  from  your  office  of  trustee,  and  also  from  membership  in  said 
church. 

[Signed]  John  Cornish,  Mi7iister  in  Charge  of  Bethel. 

The  next  step  taken  we  learn  from  the  following  record: 

As  soon  as  the  trustees  were  all  informed  of  the  decision  of  the  com- 
mittee, they  closed  the  church  upon  the  entire  congregation,  and  barri- 
caded the  doors  on  the  inside  so  that  they  could  not  be  opened,  t 

Brother  Isaac  Davis,  one  of  the  trustees  who  was  opposed  to 
the  outrages  of  his  colleagues,  with  some  other  members  of  the 

*  These  nineteen  represented  that  class  of  laymen  who  are  always  de- 
nouncing the  preachers  as  a  set  of  tyrants  "lording  it  over  God's  heritage," 
and  crying  out  for  a  democratical  form  of  government  by  the  people  and 
for  the  people.  In  this  case  nineteen  people  were  acting  for  one  hundred, 
or  the  remaining  eighty-one. 

t  From  this  we  see  nineteen  men  excluding  from  the  house  of  public 
worship  a  congregation  of  fifteen  thousand  persons  whose  money  had  paid 
for  the  erection  of  that  house — a  "  governing  of  the  people  by  the  people." 


The  General  Conference  of  1848. 


225 


churchj  entered  one  of  the  windows,  removed  the  barricades  and 
opened  the  church.  The  rebellious  trustees  had  them  indicted 
for  forcible  entry,  tried  before  Judge  Parsons  and  convicted.  The 
same  judge  restored  the  trustees  to  their  possession  of  the 
church.  Rev.  John  Cornish,  sustained  by  an  overwhelming 
majority  of  the  members  of  Bethel,  appealed  from  this  decision 
of  Judge  Parsons  to  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  The  cause 
was  heard.  There  were  four  judges  on  the  bench.  As  two  were  of 
opinion  in  favor  of  the  expelled  trustees,  and  two"  in  favor  of  the 
right  of  Rev.  John  Cornish  as  pastor,  the  judgment  was  of  eourse 
in  behalf  of  Brother  Cornish.  Nothing  daunted  at  this,  the 
expelled  trustees  appealed  the  ease  to  the  Supreme  Court,  who, 
after  a  patient  and  thorough  examination  of  these  difficulties, 
did,  on  the  2d  of  February,  1850,  in  the  person  of  Chief  Justice 
Gibson,  confirm  the  judgment  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas 
in  the  following 

Opinion. 

If  the  meaning  of  the  article  in  the  amendments,  upon  which  the  ques- 
tion turns,  be,  that  the  trustees,  ministers,  exhorters  and  leaders  should 
elect  their  pastors  from  among  themselves,  the  members  of  the  corpora- 
tion have  not  been,  as  they  most  certainly  intended  and  supposed  them- 
selves to  be,  in  communion  with  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
The  doctrine  and  Discipline  of  that  Church,  as  set  forth  in  the  published 
exposition  of  it,  is  fashioned  in  a  great  measure  after  that  of  the  white 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  England  and  America,  in  which  the  elec- 
tion and  ordination  of  the  priesthood  by  the  General  or  Annual  Confer- 
ences, the  ordination  of  them  by  laying  on  of  hands  by  a  Bishop  and 
elders,  and  the  fixing  of  their  appointments  by  the  Bishop,  are  cardinal 
points,  the  last  of  them  a  distinctive  one.  It  is  the  rock  on  which  the 
Church  is  founded,  and  on  which  it  has  prospered.  Remove  this  church 
from  it  and  it  ceases  to  be  Methodistic.  The  election  and  ordination  of 
elders,  and  the  fixing  of  their  appointments,  are  regulated  by  articles 
which  are  fundamental ;  and  how  does  the  article  in  the  amendment  com- 
port with  them  ?  There  is  in  the  terms  of  it  a  remarkable  want  of  preci- 
sion. It  provides  for  the  election  of  a  presiding  minister  to  superintend 
the  churches,  to  license  preachers,  and  to  preside  over  the  churches  agree- 
able to  the  Discipline. 

The  person  who  framed  the  article  in  the  amendments  probably  had  in 
view  the  office  of  a  presiding  elder,  whose  duty  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  is  "to  exercise  within  his  own  district,  during  the  absence  of  the 
superintendents  (Bishops),  all  the  powers  vested  in  them  by  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Church,  provided  that  he  never  acts  contrary  to  an  express 
order  of  the  superintendent."  His  action,  therefore,  would  be,  at  most, 
provisional  and  subordinate  to  the  permanent  authority  of  the  Bishop; 
15 


226 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


consequently,  by  that  interpretation,  and  it  is  that  which  goes  farthest  to 
reconcile  the  amendments  to  the  standards  of  the  Church,  the  induction 
of  the  respondent  by  the  Bishop  was  legal  and  canonical. 

But  in  any  aspect  whatever,  a  congregational  election  of  a  presiding 
elder  would  be  neither.  To  say  nothing  of  the  fact  that  the  Discipline 
requires  him  to  be  elected  by  the  Annual  Conference,  he  might  be  taken 
from  the  trustees,  ministers,  exhorters,  or  leaders,  happen  to  be  a  layman, 
and  in  that  event  who  was  to  set  him  apart  ?  If  he  was  to  be  ordained  by 
laymen,  or  not  at  all,  the  object  of  the  amendment  was  to  make  the  church 
congregational,  while  it  professed  to  be  Methodistical,  and  it  was,  there- 
fore, a  disingenuous  one.  The  Annual  Conference  could  not  ordain  him, 
and  its  connection  with  the  congregation  would  be  virtually  dissolved. 
Besides,  the  word  minister  is  not  used  in  the  Discipline  as  the  specific 
name  of  any  clerical  office  whatever.  The  clergy  are  divided  into  bishops, 
elders  and  deacons.  The  exhorters,  local  preachers  and  leaders  are  lay- 
men. With  all  the  lights  obtained  from  an  elaborate  argument,  I  am  un- 
able to  understand  the  drift  of  this  strange  amendment. 

But  contemporaneous  practice  is  a  powerful  interpreter  of  doubtful 
meaning  ;  and  when  long  continued  by  common  consent,  as  in  this  instance 
for  more  than  thirty  years,  it  is  irresistible.  Perhaps  a  legal  presumption 
might  arise  from  lapse  of  time,  that  this  fundamental  article,  irreconci- 
lable to  the  usage  and  practice  of  the  Church,  had  been  expugned  in  the 
way  knowrn  to  the  law.  In  every  aspect  it  is  a  riddle,  and  the  congregation 
have  been  wise  in  treating  it  as  a  nullity.  They  could  not  have  done 
otherwise  without  abandoning  their  standard  and  falsifying  the  name  of 
the  corporation. 

But  even  if  the  corporation  had  power  to  choose  its  ministers,  it  has 
failed  to  exercise  it.  Surely,  then,  professing  to  be  a  Methodist  congrega- 
tion, and  refusing  to  elect  for  itself,  it  might  waive  its  right,  and  receive  its 
ministers  from  the  hand  of  the  Bishop,  according  to  the  regulations  of  the 
Church  with  which  it  professed  to  be  connected.  If  it  might  not,  all  its 
spiritual  acts  since  the  amendments  were  adopted  have  been  invalid,  and 
how  far  its  temporal  acts  might  be  affected  by  reason  of  the  illegality  of  the 
appointment  to  office  of  the  president  of  the  board  of  trustees  might  raise 
a  serious  question.  Perhaps  the  acts  of  the  elder  in  charge,  as  an  officer  de 
facto,  might  be  good  ;  but  it  certainly  is  not  the  policy  of  the  corporation  to 
encourage  strife  and  litigation.  The  best  friends  of  its  peace  and  pros- 
perity will  not  do  so. 

The  respondent,  therefore,  is  the  legally  inducted  elder  in  charge,  and 
the  trustees  who  were  expelled  by  him  pursuant  to  the  discipline  of  the 
Church  have  no  standing  in  court.    Judgment  affirmed. 

Supreme  Coukt,  February  2d,  1850. 

The  article  above  referred  to  is  in  the  following  w  ords  : 

The  trustees,  ministers,  exhorters  and  leaders,  or  such  of  them  as  shall 
convene  upon  due  notice  given  them  after  public  worship  in  the  church  or 
churches  the  Sabbath  before  such  meeting,  shall  have  power  to  choose  and 


The  General  Conference  of  1848. 


227 


elect  from  their  own  body  a  presiding  minister  of  the  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  to  superintend  the  churches,  to  license  preachers  or  ex* 
barters,  to  preside  over  the  church  or  churches  agreeably  to  the  discipline 
thereof,  and  to  do  all  other  acts  which  are  or  may  be  assigned  him  to  do. 
And  the  said  trustees,  ministers,  exhorters  and  leaders  shall  also  have 
power,  with  the  consent  of  two-thirds  of  the  members  of  the  said  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  from  time  to  time,  to  make  such  alteration  of 
these  and  other  articles  of  the  said  corporation,  both  to  temporal  and  spir- 
itual matters,  as  they  shall  think  expedient. 

This  last  mentioned  article  is  not  the  only  objectionable  and 
unreasonable  article  in  the  constitution  of  Bethel.  There  is 
another,  or  was  at  the  time  of  these  difficulties,  that  gave  to  the 
trustees  the  power  to  prohibit  the  admission  of  any  person  into 
the  membership  of  the  church  whom  they  might  dislike,  or  in 
whoso  characters  or  manners  they  might  see  something  objection- 
able— real  or  imaginary.  Upon  these  two  articles  they  were  in 
the  habit  of  entrenching  themselves  whenever  they  felt  like  it. 
Here  is  a  case  in  point : 

In  1847  the  members  of  Union  Church  in  Philadelphia,  then 
numbering  several  hundred,  petitioned  Conferenee  to  send  them 
a  pastor;  for,  from  its  organization  to  that  time,  it  had  to 
depend  upon  the  stationed  preacher  at  Bethel  for  the  supply 
of  all  its  spiritual  wants,  so  far  as  they  related  to  preaching 
and  the  regular  means  of  grace.  The  petition  was  granted, 
and  Rev.  Alexander  Waynian  wras  appointed  by  Bishops  Brown 
and  Quinn  to  minister  to  them.  The  trustees  of  Bethel,  who 
were  also  trustees  of  Union,  heard  of  the  appointment,  and  in- 
stantly sent  a  note  to  the  Conferenee  by  their  secretary,  Rev. 
David  Ware,  forbidding  and  really  annulling  the  action  of  the 
Conference,  as  Avell  as  the  appointment  of  the  Bishops.  There 
were  men,  both  in  the  corporation  of  Bethel  as  well  as  outside, 
who  had  foreseen  the  difficulties  to  which  these  articles  would 
lead,  and  were  faithful  to  warn  the  people  against  them  :  none 
were  more  zealous  in .  this  respect  than  that  eagle-sighted  man, 
Dr.  James  J.  G.  Bias.  His  repeated  warnings  not  only  made 
him  unpopular  with  the  trustees,  but  also  brought  down  upon 
his  head,  and  upon  all  who  thought  as  he  did,  the  wrath  of  the 
trustees'  friends.  In  the  Conference,  at  which  the  trustees  vetoed 
the  appointing  power,  there  were  brethren  found  honest  enough 
to  expose  the  mischievous  consequences  of  giving  back  to  the 
trustees,  and  bold  enough  to  resist  them;  but  they  were  ordered 
by  the  presiding  Bishop — Bishop  Morris  Brown — to  take  their 


228 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


.-cats.  But  Bishop  Brown  did  not  thus  act  because  he  believed  it 
was  wrong  to  oppose  the  trustees  and  right  to  heed  their  veto, 
but  because  he  preferred  peace  rather  than  strife ;  and  knowing 
the  determination  of  the  trustees,  he  thought  it  better  to  wave 
the  right  vested  in  him  than  to  have  the  church  distracted  by 
the  storm  which  he  knew  they  would  raise.  This  course  did  not 
prevent  the  apprehended  evil,  however — it  only  postponed  it  to 
a  later  period.  It  would  seem  that  the  safe  rule,  and  the  only 
safe  one,  is  the  scripture  rule — "First  pure,  then  peaceable." 

The  suit  that  grew  out  of  these  troubles  cost  the  people  of 
Bethel  the  sum  of  two  or  three  thousand  dollars  and  the  loss  of 
five  hundred  members,  who  were  expelled.  En  connection  with 
these  matters  we  have  the  following  pastoral  letter  addressed  to 
the  "  Trustees  and  ( Jonstitutional  .Male  Members  of  Bethel  Church 
in  Philadelphia : " 

Beloved  Brethren  and  Fellow  Christians: — It  has  been  made  my 
duty,  by  an  action  of  the  Annual  Conference,  to  address  a  pastoral  letter  for 
your  consideration,  relating  to  the  disagreement  of  the  Constitution  or 
Articles  of  Association  of  said  Bethel  Church  with  the  Discipline  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church. 

In  discharging  so  weighty  and  responsible  a  duty,  embracing  so  many 
and  so  momentous  interests,  I  beg  leave  to  cast  myself  upon  your  indul- 
gence while  I  endeavor,  in  the  spirit  of  my  Divine  Master,  to  give  you 
what  seems  to  me  good  reasons  why  those  Articles  should  conform  to  the 
rules  of  our  general  Church  laws.  It  cannot  be  disguised  or  denied  that 
those  Articles,  in  consequence  of  their  disagreement  with  the  Discipline, 
have  caused  much  unpleasant  feeling  among  the  traveling  preachers  and 
among  all  orders  of  Christians  in  our  Church.  That  this  feeling  has  crept 
into  private  and  public  places,  into  the  Quarterly  and  Annual  Conferences, 
and  is  fast  creeping  up  (like  the  plagues  of  Egypt  into  Pharaoh's  cham- 
bers) into  the  highest  judicatories  of  our  Church,  and  where  its  course 
will  end  no  one  can  foresee.  Perhaps  in  an  unhappy  rupture  of  member- 
ship, which  God  in  his  mercy  avert. 

Fearful  of  such  a  deplorable  result,  and  desirous  to  avoid  all  the  painful 
consequences  which  would  inevitably  flow  out  of  that  nature,  I  beg  to 
interpose  my  pastoral  advice  in  obedience  to  the  instruction  given  me  by 
the  Annual  Conference,  and  to  entreat  you  to  look  to  those  most  probable 
results,  and  weigh  them  well  in  your  cool  and  deliberate  judgment  and 
reason.  You  have  it  now  in  your  power  to  do  what  might  require  years  to 
undo  when  once  the  mind  becomes  excited  to  a  high  pitch  of  irritation, 
for  then  it  will  be  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  eu'ect  a  pacification. 

But  as  I  do  not  wish  to  address  myself  to  your  fears,  I  appeal  to  your 
unbiased  jndgment  and  reason  whether  it  would  not  be  better,  upon  the 
whole,  viewing  the  subject  in  its  broadest  aspect,  for  the  sake  of  brotherly 


The  General  Conference  of  L848. 


love  and  union  among  His  ministers,  His  Church  and  flock,  so  to  alter 
these  Articles  of  Association  that  they  will  conform  to  the  Discipline  of 
our  Church  in  the  particulars  which  I  w  ill  now  endeavor  to  point  out: 

1.  The  first  point  of  disagreement  between  those  t  wo  documents  may  be 
found  in  the  last  supplement,  page  15,  paragraph  f>,  where  the  preacher  is 
prohibited  from  exercising  the  plain  law  of  the  Discipline  in  receiving  a 
member  into  society,  and  is  subject  to  this  law  of  the  Church  which  sets 
aside  the  authority  of  our  general  Church  law.  See  Discipline,  page  79, 
answer  11. 

2.  The  next  point  is  found  in  the  supplement,  page  10,  paragraph  8, 
where  the  power  is  vested  in  the  trustees  to  elect  a  preacher  to  take  charge, 
under  the  corporation,  for  a  term  of  three  years,  which  clearly  sets  aside 
all  the  power  of  the  Bishops  in  the  appointment  of  preachers  under  said 
corporation.    See  Discipline,  page  73,  answer  2. 

3.  The  supplement,  page  16,  and  in  paragraph  10,  seems  to  contradict 
itself  where  it  places  the  licensing  power  in  the  trustees,  with  the  preach- 
ers, exhorters,  etc.  And  then  says  this  licensing  shall  be  done  agreeably 
to  the  Discipline  of  the  Church,  which  is  absurd!  For  the  Discipline 
admits  not  trustees  in  the  Quarterly  Conference,  in  which  the  licensing  power 
is  vested.  Therefore  the  document  carries  inconsistency  upon  its  face,  and 
is  objectionable,  if  for  no  other  reason  than  its  absurdity  and  inconsistency. 

4.  Although  there  are  some  other  points  of  disagreement  in  these  in- 
struments, yet  I  deem  those  which  have  already  been  cited  amply  suffi- 
cient, not  only  to  convince  you  of  their  disagreement,  but  also  of  the  im- 
perative necessity  of  as  strict  a  conformity  to  the  Discipline  of  the  Church 
as  may  be. 

1  need  not  repeat  the  great  utility  of  preserving  peace  and  harmony  in 
the  Church,  which  are  frequently  interrupted,  even  by  temporal  matters, 
nor  need  I  remind,  you  of  the  fact  that  our  Connection  is  rapidly  increas- 
ing in  intelligence  and  wisdom,  and  that  whatever  errors  were  committed, 
by  our  forefathers,  and  handed  down  to  us,  will  be  scrutinized,  exposed  and 
corrected  by  a  wiser  and  better  educated  age,  and  though  error  may  tri- 
umph for  a  season,  yet  truth  crushed  to  earth  will  rise  again,  and  reason 
will  sit  enthroned  and  pass  righteous  judgment  upon  the  actions  of  bygone 
days,  for  the  march  of  intellect  cannot  be  stayed. 

Without  adding  another  argument,  I  submit  this  important  subject  to 
your  Christian  and  prayerful  consideration,  and  as  the  Articles  of  Associa- 
tion provide  for  their  own  alteration,  I  humbly,  yet  sincerely  and  importu- 
nately, entreat  you  to  give  the  whole  subject  that  calm,  deliberate  and 
faithful  attention  which  it  so  greatly  demands,  and  which,  it  seems  to  me, 
God  requires  at  our  hands.  Trusting  that  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church 
may  aid  you  in  all  your  labors  and  efforts  to  promote  his  glory  and  the 
peace  and  prosperity  of  our  Church,  I  subscribe  myself  your  fellow-laborer 
in  His  vineyard,  and  the  best  wisher  of  all  your  interests— temporal,  spirit- 
ual and  eternal.  William  Paul  Quinn. 


230 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  churches  in  Baltimore  were  two  in  number,  and  like  those 
in  Philadelphia,  had  been  owned  and  governed  by  one  board  of 
trustees,  the  majority  of  whom  were  always  members  of  the 
mother  church  in  that  city.  The  lesser,  called  Ebenezer,  had  been 
purchased  from  another  congregation  with  a  ground  rent  of  $204 
per  annum.  To  meet  this  obligation,  and  to  sustain  its  pastor, 
was  a  serious  difficulty  with  the  poor  people  who  worshipped  in 
it.  Meanwhile,  the  house  was  too  narrow,  too  short,  and  too 
dilapidated  for  the  comfort  of  the  congregation.  For  these  reasons 
they  desired  to  enlarge  and  otherwise  improve  it.  But  whenever 
they  determined  so  to  do,  they  found  themselves  invariably  op- 
posed and  successfully  hindered  by  the  trustees  of  Bethel  Qhurch. 
Fretted  and  galled  by  repeated  movements  of  this  kind,  the 
people  of  Ebenezer  knew  not  what  to  do  to  deliver  themselves 
from  such  unpleasant  circumstances:  wherefore  the  writer  advised 
their  pastor,  the  Rev.  William  H.  Jones,  to  persuade  them  to 
purchase  the  property  from  the  trustees  of  Bethel.  This  was 
done,  and  a  meeting  of  the  male  members  of  the  incorporation 
of  Bethel  was  called  to  consider  the  proposition  of  the  people  at 
Ebenezer.  In  this  meeting  the  majority  of  the  trustees  proposed 
to  sell  the  property  to  them  for  one  thousand — or,  as  some  say, 
five  hundred  dollars.  The  pastor*  advised  that  inasmuch  as  the 
people  at  Ebenezer  were  very  poor,  and  desirous  to  improve  their 
house  of  worship,  it  ought  to  be  sold  to  them  for  a  ten  dollar  bill, 
and,  also,  to  let  them  use  the  five  hundred  or  one  thousand  dollars 
to  enlarge  and  beautify  the  house.  To  this  advice  the  brethren 
present  (excepting  the  trustees)  agreed,  and*  confirmed  it  by  a 
large  majority,  only  five  of  the  trustees  voting  against  it. 
Instead  of  submitting  to  this  decision  of  the  majority  of  the 
male  members,  which  was  a  constitutional  number,  the  said  five 
trustees  contended  that  another  meeting  should  be  called,  on  the 
ground  that  all  of  the  male  members  were  not  present.  The 
pastor  complied  with  their  request,  and  a  second  time  did  a  ma- 
jority of  the  male  members — legal  voters — confirm  by  their  votes 
the  said  advice  of  the  pastor.  But  even  this  could  not  satisfy 
the  five  trustees.  At  this  latter  meeting  the  pastor  of  Bethel, 
who  was  also  ex  officio  chairman  of  the  board  of  trustees,  was 
authorized  to  execute  the  will  of  the  people.  The  deed  was  drawn 
up  by  a  learned  lawyer,  who  had  been  for  some  time  previous  the 

*The  writer  w  as  at  that  time  the  pastor  of  Bethel,  in  Baltimore. 


The  General  Conference  <>J  1848. 


regular  attorney  of  the  church,  chosen  by  these  very  five  t  rustees. 
The  day  and  hour  was  appointed  for  the  trustees  to  sign  the  deed. 
The  self-same  hour  the  pastor  was  called  to  attend  Ins  dying, 
motherless,  infant  daughter,  a  distance  of  forty  miles  away.  Be- 
fore his  departure  he  went  to  the  lawyer's  office  and  there  met  a 
portion  of  the  hoard  of  trustees.  As  time  was  rapidly  passing 
away,  and  steam  and  cars  wait  for  no  one,  he  inquired  of  the 
lawyer  whether  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  remain  until  all  the 
trustees  arrived.  1 1  is  answer  was,  "  You  can  sign  your  name  as 
chairman  in  the  presence  of  these,  and  the  others  can  sign  theirs 
upon  their  a  nival."  The  pastor  signed  and  fled  to  the  crib  of 
his  dying  child.  Upon  the  arrival  of  the  remainder  of  the  five 
trustees,  they  learned  that  the  pastor's  signature  was  made  in 
their  absence,  at  which  they  became  angry.  From  that  hour  was 
dated  the  sowing  of  the  seeds  of  discord  and  schism  in  their 
seeming  resolve  to  destroy  him.  Every  means,  fair  and  unfair, 
legal  and  illegal,  were  employed  to  carry  out  their  purposes, 
which  were  even  expressed  in  written  resolutions.  Congrega- 
tional meetings  were  called  in  which  they  and  their  partisans 
came  armed  with  clubs  to  enforce  their  resolutions.  The  reporter 
of  one  of  the  daily  papers  was  hired  to  report  the  pastor's  ser- 
mons that  matter  might  be  found  to  indict  him  in  the  civil 
courts.  In  the  meetings  the  pastor  met  them  armed  with  noth- 
ing but  arguments,  and  defeated  them.  In  the  pulpit  the  truths 
he  uttered  were  such,  that  when  published  in  the  secular  papers, 
they  were  read  approvingly  by  thousands  who  otherwise  would 
not  have  known  them.  Finally,  after  every  rational  and  scrip- 
tural means  were  variously  employed  to  convince  these  five 
men  of  their  errors,  and  lead  them  to  repentance,  they  were  im- 
peached, and  summoned  to  trial  before  the  assembled  church.  In 
this  meeting  two  women  came,  armed  with  a  cudgel  and  a  slug- 
shot.  As  soon  as  they  saw,  from  the  testimony  of  the  witnesses, 
that  conviction  was  certain,  the  women  arose  in  the  front  pew, 
where  they  had  been  sitting,  and  exclaiming,  "It  is  enough!" 
entered  the  altar,  one  of  them  striking  at  the  pastor  with 
her  cudgel,  and  the  other  assaulting  one  of  the  secretaries,  Rev. 
Darius  Stokes,  laying  him  almost  speechless  in  his  blood.  The 
activity  of  the  pastor  saved  him  from  a  blow  which  might  have 
crippled,  if  not  killed  him.  This  assault  produced  the  most 
terrible  excitement,  which  brought  in  the  city  guards,  who  ar- 
rested the  assailants  and  a  few  of  their  prominent  abettors,  and 


212  History  of  the  A.  M.  &  Church. 

threw  them  into  the  watch-house,  from  which  their  friends  soon 
bailed  them.  This  occurred  about  the  last  week  in  February, 
1849.  Within  two  weeks  from  that  riot  the  trustees  were  again 
arraigned  before  the  tribunal  of  the  assembled  church,  convicted, 
and  expelled  for  "  Rebellion  against  the  Spiritual  and  Temporal 
Government  of  the  Church."  The  lawsuit  resulting  from  this 
schism  cost  both  parties  together  about  $1,000. 

In  the  progress  of  the  troubles  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Peck  with- 
drew, and  subsequently  organized  a  society  of  his  own,  known 
by  the  name  of  the  "First  Colored  Methodist  Protestant  Church." 
This  brother  was  a  local  elder,  and  had  been  for  many  years  the 
leader  of  a  class  numbering  from  two  hundred  to  three  hundred 
members.  He  was  a  man  of  large  influence;  but  if  presuming 
upon  that,  to  not  only  withdraw  himself  but  to  lead  off  the  ma- 
jority, if  not  all  his  members,  he  "calculated  without  his  host," 
as  will  be  seen.  After  the  expulsion  of  the  rebellious  trustees, 
five  in  iiumber,  forty-five  of  their  adherents  withdrew  and  helped 
to  organize  the  above  church.  At  the  time  of  their  secession, 
the  register  of  Bethel  showed  over  twelve  hundred  members. 
So  the  loss,  if  it  could  lie  so  called,  was  very  small,  and  exceed- 
ingly so  when  compared  with  the  five  hundred  who  were  excluded 
from  Bethel,  in  Philadelphia,  at  a  single  stroke  of  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal knife.  These  five  hundred  in  Philadelphia  united  with  the 
organization  just  named. 

This  year  the  corner-stone  of  the  largest,  most  convenient,  and 
beautiful  piece  of  church  architecture  we  had  yet  undertaken 
was  laid  in  Baltimore  city,  on  Saratoga  street,  near  Gay,  on  the  site 
previously  occupied  by  the  old  building,  which  was  purchased 
from  a  Lutheran  congregation  in  1816.  And  as  the  founders  of 
the  First  Colored  Methodist  Protestant  Church  of  Baltimore, 
Md.,  assign  the  building  of  this  house  as  one  of  the  reasons  of 
their  secession  from  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States, 
it  is  deemed  proper  just  here  to  give  an  accurate  account  of  the 
same  as  history  lor  the  present  and  future  generations: 

In  the  great  revival  of  1842,  all  denominations  in  the  states  of 
Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  shared  largely  in  it.  The  converts 
in  the  Bethel  Church  of  Baltimore  were  so  numerous  that  the 
house  became  absolutely  too  small  for  the  worshippers.  This 
circumstance  led  the  people  to  see  and  to  talk  about  the  need  of 
erecting  another  of  larger  dimensions.  Meetings  were  called  and 
plans  proposed.    Some  were  in  favor  of  adopting  immediate 


The  General  Conference  of  L848. 


233 


measures  for  building,  others  were  opposed  to  them.  This  oppo- 
sition became  so  violent  that  the  lovers  of  pence  and  good  gov- 
ernment sent  Brother  Alexander  Murray  to  Philadelphia  to  urge 
Bishop  Morris  Brown  to  visit  Baltimore  and  quell  the  risingstorm 
by  his  advice.  This  was  done  on  the  part  of  the  Bishop,  hut  noth- 
ing decisive  was  effected  by  either  party.  In  1843.  the  3d  of  May, 
Bishop  Brown  appointed  the  Rev.  H.  C.  Turner  to  the  pastorate 
of  the  three  churches  then  in  Baltimore,  with  headquarters,  like 
his  predecessors,  at  Bethel  Church,  on  Saratoga  street.  Full  of 
energy  and  practical  wisdom,  this  remarkable  young  man  set  to 
improving  the  condition  of  the  (lock  committed  to  his  care.  In 
his  efforts  he  had  to  encounter  and  correct  many  an  antiquated 
error.  Prominent  among  these  were  the  classes,  which  had  enor- 
mously overgrown  the  original  number,  twelve,  ordained  by  the 
illustrious  founder  of  Methodism;  and  increased,  not  only  to 
twenty-five  and  fifty,  but  even  to  one  hundred  and  three  hundred 
members. 

Among  the  leaders  who  held  charge  of  these  mammoth  classes 
was  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Peck,  aforementioned.  He  at  that  time 
wras  the  leader  of  two  classes  which  averaged  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  persons  each.  Rev.  Turner,  perceiving  that  leaders  at 
the  head  of  such  huge  classes  could  become  a  dangerous  power 
against  the  government  of  the  church,  began  to  reduce  the  mem- 
bers of  his  classes  down  to  a  reasonable  figure.  Of  course  this 
excited  the  displeasure  of  Brother  Peck,  as  well  as  others  whose 
classes  were  reduced.  From  that  time  until  the  hour  he  left 
Baltimore,  in  the  spring  of  1845,  when  he  was  removed  to  the 
station  at  Washington,  he  became  a  persecuted  man.  Meanwhile, 
he  had  been  taking  up  collections  for  building  a  new  church, 
on  certain  week-day  nights,  which  had  been  set  apart  for  that 
purpose  as  well  as  for  preaching,  but  the  whole  amount  collected 
by  him  during  his  labors  in  Baltimore  for  said  object  was  less 
than  $100. 

Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  the  person  to  whom  Brother  Peck  alludes 
in  the  Preface  to  his  Discipline,  was  appointed  by  Bishop  Brown 
as  the  successor  of  Rev.  H.  C.  Turner.  Soon  after  his  arrival  in 
the  city  of  Baltimore  to  take  charge  of  the  three  churches,  he 
was  called  upon  by  Brother  Peck,  and  by  insinuations  advised 
to  pursue  a  course  opposite  to  that  of  Brother  Turner;  at  the 
same  time  he  was  requested  to  let  him  (Peck)  go  into  the  coun- 
try and  preach  a^  he  pleased  and  when  he  pleased.    This  last 


234 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


request  the  pastor  (Payne)  resolved  to  grant,  but  at  the  same 
time,  as  far  as  reformation  and  progress  were  concerned,  to  walk 
himself  in  the  footsteps  of  his  illustrious  predecessor.  As  might 
reasonably  be  expected,  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  became  as  much  the 
object  of  dislike  as  Rev.  H.  C.  Turner  had  been.  And  as  he 
vigorously  prosecuted  measures  to  raise  the  means  for  church- 
building,  this  dislike  became  more  manifest  on  the  part  of 
Brother  Peck.  Finally,  a  meeting  of  all  the  male  members  was 
called  to  decide  by  a  constitutional  vote  the  question  as  to  the 
building  of  a  new  church.  Brother  Peck  and  his  adherents  con- 
tended that  they  needed  none;  that  if  a  new  one  must  be  built 
they  should  wait  until  they  had  two-thirds  the  needed  amount; 
that,  to  use  Brother  Peck's  published  words,  he  "was  of  the 
decided  opinion  that  any  effort  on  the  part  of  the  brethren  to 
make  an  immediate  disposition  of  the  property  by  pulling  down 
the  old  church  and  erecting  a  new  one  in  its  stead  was  prema- 
ture, uncalled  for,  and  calculated  to  involve  the  church  in  debt 
beyond  its  ability  to  meet."  On  the  other  hand,  Payne  and 
his  friends  maintained  that  one-third  of  the  amount  needed  to 
build  the  required  house  of  worship  was  all  that  was  necessary 
to  begin  with,  and  that  a  membership  of  over  one  thousand  per- 
sons, together  with  the  friends  of  the  church,  numbering  one 
thousand  more,  had  resources  within  themselves  sufficient  to 
raise  the  balance  and  pay  punctually  when  due  the  notes  which 
might  be  given;  and  in  that  matter  every  cent  of  the  actual  cost 
could  be  paid  within  eight  years.  When  the  question  was  put,  a 
cloud  of  members  rushed  to  the  right  of  the  altar,  as  had  been 
requested,  to  signify  themselves  in  favor  of  building  the  house  as 
soon  as  $5,000,  or  one-third  of  the  needed  amount,  should  be 
raised.  Brother  Peck  and  about  a  half-dozen  adherents  took  the 
left  hand  of  the  altar  as  opposed  to  the  measure.  Still,  against 
this  overwhelming  majority,  he  sent  to  the  next  Annual  Confer- 
ence a  protesting  document,  which  was  unheeded,  though  he 
was  not  treated  unkindly  either  by  word  or  deed.  In  about  one 
year  from  this  decision  of  the  people  the  sum  of  $5,000  in  cash 
and  available  notes  was  in  bank — of  the  former  about  $4,500,  of 
the  latter  about  $500. 

August  2d,  1847,  the  corner-stone  of  the  new  Bethel  was 
laid  on  the  site  of  the  old  edifice,  and  within  twelve  months 
from  that  day  the  house  was  finished — a  beautiful  specimen  of 
the  Romanesque  style  of  architecture,  about  83  feet  by  64,  having 


The  General  Conference  of  L84& 


235 


within  its  enclosures  almost  every  convenience  needed  tor  the 
purposes  of  an  enlightened  Christian  congregation,  and  costing 
about  $16,000.  By  the  day  the  key  was  put  into  our  hands, 
$5,000  of  that  sum  was  paid.  By  a  written  contract  eight  years 
were  given  to  pay  the  balance,  in  eight  equal  annual  notes,  with 
interest  on  the  whole  amount  payable  half-yearly.  All  of  these 
notes  were  met  by  the  day  of  their  maturity,  the  majority 
of  them  being  paid  a  few  days  before.  The  result  shows  whose 
calculations  and  judgment  were  correct. 

On  the  9th  of  July,  1848,  this  majestic  temple  of  the  Lord  was 
consecrated  with  very  interesting  and  imposing  ceremonies.  The 
day  that  witnessed  the  finish  of  the  beautiful  house  of  God  also 
dated  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  the  congregation  worshipping  in 
it.  Up  to  that  time  they  were  regarded  by  the  white  community 
as  the  most  ignorant,  most  indolent  and  most  useless  body  of 
Christians  in  the  city.  Since  then  they  have  been  commended 
as  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  enterprising  in  it. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


THE  CHURCHES,  1849-1851. 


Condition  of  the  Baltimore  Churches  in  1849 — Philadelphia  Churches- 
Death  of  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown— Lost  Records  of  New  York  and  Can- 
ada— Statement  of  Ohio  Churches — Deluded  Philanthropists — An  Unbe- 
lieving Disciple — Southern  Men's  Acquaintance  with  Northern  Proceed- 
ings— Philadelphia  Churches  in  1851 — Baltimore  Churches — Fugitive 
Slave  Law — Difficulty  in  Canadian  Churches — First  Colored  Methodist 
Church,  Sacramento,  California — Black  Laws. 


HE  condition  of  the  Baltimore  churches  in  1849  can  be  seen 


from  the  following  statements:    There  was  but  one  ordina- 


tion at  the  Annual  Conference,  that  of  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones 
to  the  eldership.  There  had  sprung  up  a  spirit  of  rebellion  in 
the  church,  and  some  measures  seemed  necessary  to  suppress  it. 
Such  were  taken,  and  resolutions  were  also  passed  in  favor  of 
establishing  one  mission  in  Africa  and  one  in  the  West  Indies. 
But  this  resolution  to  establish  those  missions  by  the  Baltimore 
Conference  was  not  executed,  just  because  it  mistook  the  desire 
to  do  for  the  ability  to  perform.  The  Conference  was  ignorant 
of  the  truth — that  it  requires  thousands  of  dollars  to  establish  a 
mission  in  foreign  lands,  especially  in  a  land  of  barbarians  and 
Bavages,  who.  for  a  long  while  almost  always  assume  the  repl- 
iant attitude  toward  Christian  efforts  to  turn  them  away  from 
idols  and  fetichism,  and  out  of  darkness  into  light  ;  therefore  no 
aid  can  be  expected  from  them,  hence  the  entire  support  of  the 
missions  must  be  raised  at  home.  And,  moreover,  the  member- 
ship included  within  the  regions  controlled  by  the  Baltimore 
Conference  was  utterly  unprepared  to  undertake  such  a  work — 
unprepared,  because  they  were  too  poor  to  raise  the  amount  of 
money  needed  for  such  a  work. 

The  condition  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  in  the  same  year 
may  be  briefly  disposed  of.  Some  expulsions  and  silencing  of 
members  took  place  for  the  same  reasons  that  forced  the  Balti- 
more church  to  take  action,  viz.:  rebellion;  and  the  preamble  and 
resolutions  offered  by  Dr.  J.  J.  G.  Bias  in  the  Baltimore  Confer- 
ence to  that  end  were  substantially  adopted  in  this. 

The  death  of  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  occurred  this  year,  to- 


TW.M  MMWc  MORRIS  BROW. 


SECOND  EISSOF  OF  THE  AFRICAN  3dETE~OEIST  EFTS  COPAL  CFIUR^ 
OF  THE  UNITEB  STATES. 


The  Churches,  L849-1851. 


237 


gether  with  that  of  the  Rev.  David  Ware.  Of  the  latter  no 
obituary  notice  18  found.  The  former's  life  and  works  are  men- 
tioned in  another  chapter. 

Again  the  records  are  vaeant  by  inability  to  find  the  New  York 
and  Canada  notes  for  t he  year ;  but  the  Ohio  eh u rehes  make  state- 
ment of  ••fruitless  efforts  to  promote  the  cause  of  Literature  l>y 
publishing  a  Sunday-school  hymn  book,  catechism,  and  a  weekly 
paper  for  the  children also  that  the  same  was  true  of  the  en- 
deavor to  get  the  Conference  to  define  its  position  in  relation  to 
war  and  slavery. 

In  regard  to  the  Union  Seminary  it  was  found  that  after  the 
debts  upon  the  land  were  paid,  there  were  left  in  hand,  as  an 
itemized  account,  seventy-six  dollars  and  forty  cents  ($76.40), 
besides  twenty  kegs  of  nails,  with  various  other  appurtenances 
of  building,  including  glass,  locks,  nails  and  screws,  together 
with  eighteen  boxes  and  three  packages  of  books. 

The  Ohio  Conference  numbered  Rev.  Samuel  Collins  with 
those  who  fell  asleep  in  Jesus  this  year,  while  the  Indiana  Con- 
ference reports  the  deaths  of  Revs.  Robert  Johnson  and  Benjamin 
Cole.  This  last  Conference  found  it  expedient  to  deal  sternly 
as  regards  disciplinary  measures  this  year,  and  other  business 
gave  way  to  the  execution  of  such  measures. 

As  we  turn  to  the  year  1850  there  is  a  vacancy  caused  by  the 
lack  of  the  transactions  of  the  Baltimore  Conference.  But  in 
the  Philadelphia  Conference  one  of  the  first  questions  was, 
"  Whether  it  should  be  tolerated  for  women  to  form  a  Connection, 
and  appoint  their  preachers  to  stations  in  the  several  districts?" 
This  created  a  little  discussion,  and  a  resolution  to  appoint  a 
committee  to  consider  the  question  was  offered  and  passed,  but 
after  a  moment's  reflection  it  was  rescinded.  The  origin  of  this 
question  is  found  in  the  fact  that  certain  women  members  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church,  who  believed  themselves  divinely  commissioned 
to  preach  by  formal  licenses,  subsequently  organized  themselves 
into  an  association  with  the  avowed  intention  of  laying  out  a 
field  of  usefulness  for  themselves,  and  making  out  appointments 
for  such  a  field  after  the  manner  of  our  Annual  Conferences. 
They  held  together  for  a  brief  period,  and  then  fell  to  pieces  like 
a  rope  of  sand. 

The  last  Friday  in  June,  1850,  was  set  apart  as  a  day  of  fasting 
and  prayer  for  the  abolition  of  slavery.  This  is  the  second  instance 
on  record  of  an  Annual  Conference  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  setting 


238 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


apart  a  day  for  general  fasting  and  prayer  to  the  Almighty  for  the 
overthrow  of  that  infernal  system  of  oppression,  known  through- 
out the  civilized  world  as  American  Slavery.  It  must  be  called 
infernal,  because  slavery  is  a  crime  against  humanity — so  heinous 
in  its  spirit,  and  so  barbarous  in  its  manifestations,  that  none  but 
a  devil  incarnate,  or  otherwise,  could  have  been  the  one  to  suggest 
it.  But  more  still  I  call  it  infernal  because  the  fugitive  slave, 
escaping  from  the  South  to  their  asylum  under  the  aegis  of  Great 
Britain,  was  pursued  by  four-legged  bloodhounds  on  Southern 
soil  and  by  two-legged  bloodhounds  on  Northern  soil,  whose 
villages,  towns  and  cities  were  governed  with  Christian  churches, 
schools  and  colleges.  And  yet  still  more  must  it  be  called  infer- 
nal because  the  Fugitive  Slave  Bill,  which  was  in  great  activity 
at  this  time,  had  provisions  in  it  bribing  the  courts  of  justice 
against  the  weak  and  defenseless  fugitive,  but  in  favor  of  his 
avaricious  claimant,  on  whose  side  already  existed  the  American 
sword  and  the  American  purse.  And  yet  still  more  must  it  be 
called  infernal  because  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law  was  enacted  by  a 
civilized  Christian  government,  which  gave  to  a  white  man  the 
right  to  prove  his  ownership  in  a  horse,  a  cow,  or  a  bale  of  cotton, 
at  the  same  time  that  it  denied  a  black  man  the  right  to  prove 
his  own  personal  freedom,  or  that  of  his  wife  and  children.  It 
was  this  state  of  things  in  the  American  Republic  which  was 
crushing  more  than  four  millions  of  native  Americans,  and  crush- 
ing them  because  they  were  descendants  of  the  Hamitic  family, 
ancl  which  induced  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  to 
fall'on  its  knees  again  and  again,  and  cry  out  to  God  against 
their  oppressors. 

Brothers  I.  R.  V.  Morgan,  Richard  Barney  and  S.  Holcomb 
were  introduced  into  the  holy  order  of  deacons.  Andrew  Rod- 
dell  had  died,  and  some  expulsions  and  withdrawals  took  place — 
the  results  of  the  rebellion  of  1848. 

A  committee,  consisting  of  Brothers  Xazery,  Beulah  and  John 
Cornish,  was  appointed  to  collect  all  the  information  possible  rel- 
ative to  the  history  of  the  Church  in  the  Philadelphia  District. 
It  was  also  made  their  duty  to  transmit  the  same  to  D.  A.  Payne  * 

A  home  mission  was  also  established  for  the  city  and  county 
of  Philadelphia. 

*This  work  was  never  performed.  Had  it  been,  the  history  of  those 
days  would  now  be  enriched  by  details  which  the  lapse  of  time  renders  it 
now  impossible  to  attain, 


The  Churches,  L849-1861. 


239 


Again  we  find  a  hiatus  in  the  records,  and  this  time  it  is  the 
minutes  of  the  New  York  churches  which  are  missing  in  L850. 
The  Ohio  churches,  however,  are  known  to  have  assembled,  and 
to  have  ordained  Joseph  McLaren  and  Wat  kins  Lee  as  elders. 
This  Conference  also  organized  a  society,  to  be  named  the 
"Christian  Herald  and  Book  Concern  Society,"  the  object  of 
which  was  to  aid  the  book  concern,  and  promote  the  diffusion  of 
useful  knowledge;  but  we  have  no  further  record  that  it  ever 
accomplished  any  actual  work. 

A  resolution  condemnatory  of  American  slavery  was  passed 
this  year,  though  the  Conference  chose  to  be  silent  upon  the  sub- 
ject the  previous  year. 

The  cause  of  education,  as  it  stood  in  the  hands  of  this  Con- 
ference, may  be  seen  in  the  annual  report  of  the  principal  of 
Union  Seminary,  which  is  given  elsewhere. 

The  general  book  steward  also  made  a  report,  which  is  inserted 
in  full  at  this  point : 

REPORT  OF  THE  GENERAL  BOOK  STEWARD. 

To  the  Bishoji  and  Conference  of  the  Ohio  District : 

Beloved  Brethren  :— After  another  year's  toil  and  much  mental  suffer- 
ing, it  has  become  my  duty  to  spread  before  you  the  proceedings  of  this 
fiscal  year,  and  the  enterprise  of  the  General  Fund  System  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  Connection.  And  while  I  have  much  to  deplore,  and  great 
reason  for  regret  at  the  small  advance  we  have  made  in  accumulating 
funds,  yet  we  can,  amidst  all  the  gloomy  scenes  through  which  we  have 
been  called  to  pass,  rejoice  in  being  permitted  to  eay  that  out  of  all  the 
Lord  hitherto  hath  sustained  us!  and  to  his  Almighty  guidance  wre  attrib- 
ute the  present  existence  of  our  enterprise,  as  well  as  our  hope  for  future 
success.  First,  the  report  of  books  sold  this  year  has  been  very  dimin- 
utive, from  the  fact  that  we  could  not  raise  money  to  print  them.  The 
demand  for  hymn  books  has  been  very  large,  but  to  the  present  I  have  not 
been  able  to  supply  them.  This  will  answer  the  inquiry  of  the  brethren 
who  have  found  it  in  their  minds  to  consider  our  non-compliance  bad 
treatment  when  they  sent  in  their  orders.  However  small  the  amount 
supplied,  it  will  be  seen  by  our  balance  sheet  that  a  greater  portion  is  yet 
unpaid  to  the  treasury.  As  we  had  not  mear<s  to  print  the  hymn  book,  we 
felt  duty  bound  to  publish  the  paper  regularly,  as  we  had  a  few  advance- 
paying  subscribers  whom  we  wished  not  to  disappoint,  as  well  as  to  gain  the 
entire  confidence  of  the  Connection  in  carrying  on  regularly  the  organ  of 
the  Church,  which,  if  properly  appreciated  and  sustained,  would  prove 
one  of  the  most  powerful  means  both  for  revenue  and  general  advance- 
ment of  our  cause.  Much  more  is  to  be  derived  from  the  organ  of  the 
Church  in  a  Connection  like  ours  than  can  be  in  any  other  way  of  raising 


240 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


funds  and  disseminating  general  information  of  our  own  cause,  which  is 
by  no  means  the  least  in  our  religious,  political  and  civil  elevation.  And 
it  is  yearly  in  its  returns,  while  books  will  last  for  several  years,  conse- 
quently every  subscriber  to  the  paper  who  pays  in  advance  is  giving  a 
powerful  impetus  to  the  whole  concern  ;  for,  as  the  paper  succeeds,  it  will 
give  life  to  all  the  other  departments. 

The  report  this  year  of  receipts  for  the  second  volume  of  the  Christian 
Herald,  it  will  be  seen,  is  comparatively  nothing  to  what  it  should  be  up 
to  this  date :  out  of  the  sum  of  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  subscrip- 
tion we  have  only  received  three  hundred  and  twenty-six  dollars  and 
seventy-four  cents. 

The  press  for  means  has  been  great,  and  it  has  demanded  extensive 
traveling  to  present  the  claims  before  the  people.  To  accomplish  which  I 
have  traveled  during  the  past  ten  months  forty-four  hundred  and  fifty 
miles,  and  lectured  and  exhorted  both  preachers  and  people  to  come  up  to 
the  work,  and  have  only  to  regret  that  our  efforts  were  only  successful  in  a 
small  degree;  and  with  the  major  part,  all  the  good  and  flattering  resolu- 
tions passed  for  relieving  the  book  concern  of  her  great  liabilities  have 
died  a  natural  death ;  and  with  one  or  two  glorious  exceptions,  all  the 
pledges  of  raising  funds  is  yet  to  be  accomplished.  Brethren  who  felt 
fully  confident  of  their  ability  to  comply  at  any  moment,  are  yet  to  be 
found  in  the  faithful  number  in  this  essential  labor  for  the  honor  of  the 
cause  and  prosperity  of  Zion.  It  will  be  seen,  by  comparing  the  benevo- 
lent operations  of  the  former  with  the  present  year,  that  there  has  been  a 
falling  off  from  last  year's  report  from  that  source  of  the  sum  of  three  hun- 
dred and  ninety-seven  dollars.  This  is  truly  discouraging,  but  when  fully 
understood  it  will,  I  trust,  prove  a  means  to  arouse  to  emulation  every 
preacher  and  society  in  the  Connection,  for  it  is  beyond  contradiction  that 
the  only  reason  for  a  depreciation  in  the  funds  is  because  there  was  less 
effort  made  this  year  than  was  in  the  former,  although  the  demand  was 
equally  as  great.  To  establish  this  fact,  I  need  only  to  refer  to  our  twin 
cities,  Pittsburg  and  Allegheny,  who  in  the  last  year  paid  into  the  treasury 
for  the  aid  of  the  book  concern  two  hundred  and  eighty-six  dollars  and 
sixty-eight  cents.  We  give  to  these  cities  the  honor  of  raising  within 
thirty-eight  dollars  and  sixteen  cents  of  the  entire  sum  raised  this  year 
from  the  Connection.  The  same  good  feelings,  and  considerably  better, 
have  been  exemplified,  so  far  as  words  are  concerned,  for  the  prosperity 
of  the  concern,  and  the  people  were  as  willing  as  ever,  we  conscientiously 
believe  ;  but  the  exertion  was  not  made,  as  there  always  must  be  a  leader. 
As  we  had  labored  extensively  at  this  point,  through  considerable  oppo- 
sition that  should  not  have  been  expected,  I  determined  to  let  the  subject 
of  raising  funds  be  with  the  proper  authorities  appointed  by  the  Connec- 
tion to  this  office;  and  to  this  we  attribute  the  declension.  This  will,  we 
trust,  be  remedied  for  the  future  by  the  more  efficient  plan  of  quarterly 
public  collections,  as  has  been  adopted  by  all  the  Conferences  that  I  have 
been  permitted  to  visit.  The  cash  system  adopted,  I  find,  will  have  to  be 
the  rule  for  business  with  our  paper,  for  it  is  a  demonstrated  fact  that  if  we 


The  Churches,  1849-1861. 


241 


have  at  this  early  period  bo  great  an  amount  from  so  few  subscribers,  the  only 
alternative  is  to  receive  whatever  we  do  get  in  hand,  and  then  if  we  are  to 
go  on  a  little,  we  know  how  to  measure  our  coat;  hut  when  hundreds  of 
dollars  are  expected,  and  then  fall  short  two  thirds,  it  is  too  far  behind  for 
any  business  to  sustain  itself  under.  Every  dollar  due  the  book  concern 
could  and  should  have  been  paid,  as  well  as  the  pledged  funds,  long  ere 
this,  if  it  was  only  engaged  in  as  any  other  lawful  contract;  and  thus  we 
should  at  once  rise  to  a  condition  that  has  by  many  been  long  desired. 

Another  subject  which  I  feel  it  my  duty  to  apprise  you  of  is  the  failure 
of  the  two  Eastern  Conferences  to  raise  the  sums  proposed  and  published 
as  agreed  to  he  raised,  i.  e.,  l<  the  two  hundred,  dollars  ($200)  pledged  at  the 
Baltimore  Conference,  to  be  forwrarded  to  the  agent  by  the  first  of  August, 
1850  "  (and,  to  my  detriment  in  business,  I  have  not  received  but  ten  dollars 
from  Rev.  L.  Lee,  of  the  whole  sum),  and  the  failure  of  the  Phil- 
adelphia District  to  raise,  by  loan,  three  hundred  dollars  ($300)  to  aid  in 
printing  hymn-books  and  paying  our  liabilities.  Up  to  this  time  I  have 
not  received  one  dollar  of  that  amount;  thus  leaving  us  behind  all  former 
calculations  from  those  twro  points  the  sum  of  four  hundred  and  ninety 
dollars. 

I  need  not  proceed  to  explain  any  further  the  reasons  for  our  making  so 
little  progress  in  raising  funds,  for  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  mortifications 
of  my  mind  to  be  compelled  to  exist  at  such  a  poor  dying  rate,  and  have  to 
mourn  over  the  conduct  of  several  of  our  itinerant  brethren,  whose  actions 
to  me  appeared  to  be  anything  but  what  they  should  be  in  regard  to  our 
book  concern  and  Christian  Herald.  We  admit  of  our  unworthiness  to 
fill  so  responsible  a  station  as  that  reposed  in  me  in  this  department  of  the 
Church,  but  amidst  all  our  imperfections,  it  wTas  not  our  choice  that  placed 
us  here,  therefore  we  feel  aggrieved  at  any  reflections  emanating  from 
those  who  were  well  acquainted  with  every  fact  before  we  came  to  the 
office. 

We  shall,  however,  give  ourself  and  cause  into  the  hands  of  Him  who 
knoweth  the  secrets  of  all  hearts,  and  will  render  to  all  their  just  deserts. 
In  humble  obedience,  I  remain  your  humble  servant  and  fellow  laborer  in 
the  cause  of  our  great  Redeemer." 

This  document  shows  a  very  sad  and  gloomy  state  of  things 
among  us,  and  prove  how  little  we  care  for  the  cause  of  literature. 
There  are  several  points  in  this  report  to  which  I  wish  to  call 
attention  : 

(a.)  The  negligence  of  the  Eastern  Conferences.  When  the 
book  concern  was  located  in  the  East,  and  under  the  management 
of  an  Eastern  man,  the  Western  Conferences  were  always  com- 
plaining. Now.  at  this  time,  from  1848-50,  it  was  west  of  the 
Alleghenies,  and  we  see  that  the  West  is  neglected  by  the  East,  as 
the  East  had  been  neglected  by  the  West,    The  West  believed  and 


242 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


said,  "If  the  concern  be  moved  west  of  the  mountains  we  will 
sustain  it."  but  it  was  not  any  better  sustained  in  the  West  than 
it  had  been  in  the  East. 

(b.)  The  subscription  list  of  the  Church  organ,  then  called  the 
Christian  Herald,  amounted  to  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty  dol- 
lars (SI, 8*50),  but  only  three  hundred  and  twenty-six  dollars 
and  seventy-four  cents  ($326.74)  were  received. 

(c.)  This  failure  was  not  due  to  an}'  lethargy  or  neglect  of  the 
general  book  steward,  because  he  traveled  during  the  year  four 
thousand  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  lecturing  and  exhorting 
both  preachers  and  people  to  come  up  to  the  work.  And  yet  his 
efforts  were  only  successful  in  a  small  degree. 

((/.)  The  support  which  he  and  the  concern  received  was  chiefly 
local,  being  confined  to  Pittsburg  and  Allegheny.  Now,  what 
was  the  money  value  of  that  support?    Only  8286.68. 

(e.)  Look  at  the  treatment  of  the  Baltimore  Conference.  They 
had  pledged  8200  for  the  aid  of  the  book  concern.  How  much 
did  they  pay  ?  Only  BIO,  which  sum  was  raised  by  one  man 
only — Rev.  Levin  Lee,  of  Baltimore  City. 

Look  at  the  conduct  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference.  They 
pledged  8300  to  aid  in  printing  hymn-books,  and  gave  not  one 
dollar. 

The  Indiana  churches  report  a  few  deaths — Samuel  Miller, 
Nathaniel  Bowman  and  Robert  Marsh,  local  preachers,  and  Isaac 
Fourse,  an  itinerant.  This  year  we  have  no  record  of  the 
Canada  Conference  work. 

Among  the  literary  remains  of  18-50  we  cull  the  following  as 
showing  something  of  the  state  of  affairs  at  that  time — affairs 
particularly  affecting  the  subjects  of  anti-slavery  and  coloniza- 
tion. Rev.  J.  M.  Brown  writes  an  account  of  a  trip  from  New 
Albany,  Ind.,  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  and  his  "Notes  by  the  Way" 
give  us  an  insight  into  our  condition  as  a  people : 

On  the  5th  of  September  Rev.  T.  Lawrence  and  myself,  in  company 
with  other  friends,  glided  pleasantly  from  the  wharf  at  New  Albany,  Ind., 
for  St.  Louis,  Mo.  During  the  trip  we  found  ourselves  comfortably  situated 
midst  many  defenders  of  the  ''Patriarchal  Institutions."  Having  never 
traveled  in  a  region  of  the  country  so  at  war  with  every  interest  of  the 
colored  man,  I  felt  it  a  privilege  to  gaze  upon  the  doomed  shores  of  slave- 
holding  states. 

The  first  morning  after  we  left  Albany  we  were  detained  hard  by  the 
shores  of  Kentucky  in  consequence  of  the  fog,  and  for  the  first  time  in 
my  life  I  saw  plantation  slaves,   Being  quite  a  curiosity  to  me  I  ventured 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


24?> 


upon  the  shore  to  behold  what  to  me  w  as  a  curiosity  indeed,  and  about  the 
time  our  hoat  left  one  of  these  defenders  of  the  " Peculiar  Institution  " 
came  aboard  with  his  slave.  Had  a  wild  animal  come  aboard  of  the  boat 
I  should  not  have  felt  more  interest  to  see  and  know  it  than  I  was  to  see 
and  know  that  poor  brother. 

Soon  we  were  under  sail,  and  at  the  close  of  the  second  day  we  had  a 
sermon  from  a  clergyman  of  Kentucky.  As  my  faith  is  not  very  strong  in 
these  Southern  gentlemen  in  the  garb  of  ministers,  I  could  not  feel  to 
approach  his  services  other  than  Thomas  did  the  Son  of  God— doubtingly. 
He,  however,  manifested  talent  of  an  ordinary  degree. 

On  the  7th  we  had  the  addition  of  a  poor  woman  and  child.  She  had 
been  separated  from  three  other  children  by  the  cruel  hand  of  slavery. 
She  appeared  the  wreck  of  human  happiness.  Her  poor  little  ones  gone, 
and  had  she  attempted  to  gain  her  liberty  there  stands  in  every  county  in 
each  state  a  bloodhound  in  human  form  ready  to  seize  and  drag  her  back 
into  slavery  ;  and  yet  we  live  in  a  liberty-loving  country. 

Sabbath  morning,  the  8th  of  September,  dawned  upon  us  most  sweetly, 
on  the  gallant  Mississippi  River.  Having  been  detained  by  fog  and  other- 
wise, we  were  compelled  to  travel  on  a  most  pleasant  and  sweet  Sabbath, 
which  we  had  intended  to  spend  in  St.  Louis,  but  were  prevented;  we  had 
to  make  the  best  of  it.  Our  friend  and  brother,  Lawrence,  at  9:30 
o'clock  delivered  a  most  excellent  discourse,  which  led  our  minds  from  the 
swearing  and  confusion  of  the  boat  to  a  better  land.  One  thing  was 
remarkable  :  While  our  brother  wras  portraying  the  evils  of  the  slavery  of 
Egypt,  all  were  ears ;  but  so  soon  as  he  alluded  to  the  slavery  of  this 
country,  the  slaveholders  and  their  friends  darted  into  the  doors  of  their 
state-rooms  as  if  shot  at  and  missed.  The  sermon  was  one  of  Brother 
Lawrence's  best  efforts,  and  brought  out  those  who  had  any  love  for  the 
colonization  scheme ;  and  the  friends  of  the  institution  thought  that  our 
friend  and  your  correspondent  ought  by  all  means  to  go  to  Liberia.  Oh, 
how  he  loved  us !  No  place  so  good  as  Liberia !  Neither  religion  nor  edu- 
cation avails  anything  to  these  philanthropic  oppressors.  We  conversed 
with  one  person,  in  particular,  who  placed  in  our  hands  a  letter  from  a 
slaveholder  in  NewT  Orleans  to  that  more  than  excellent  advocate  for  the 
colonization  scheme,  Rev.  Mr.  Gurley,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  and  we  found 
that  our  friend  was  himself  a  slaveholder.  But  his  slaves  did  not  wish  nor 
would  not  leave  their  master,  even  to  be  free  in  Africa.  He  said  that  he 
had  tried  to  stimulate  them  with  the  idea  of  being  governors,  legislators, 
etc.,  which  is  now  big  in  the  minds  of  the  colonization  friends.  Poor 
deluded  philanthropists!  Any  colored  man,  matters  not  what  his  position 
or  competency  may  be  in  this  country,  a  slave  from  the  "  cotton  fields," 
gentleman's  house  servant,  or  boot-black,  may  go  to  the  colonizationists' 
Eden  and  become  immediately  a  governor  or  statesman  !  Such  delusion  is 
nonsense  in  the  extreme,  and  at  once  shows  the  respect  which  too  many  col- 
onizationists have  for  their  pet  colony.  After  conversing  at  some  length 
with  our  friend  from  New  Orleans,  who  found  your  correspondent  rather  a 
hard  and  unbelieving  disciple,  we  left  him  abusing  Douglas  and  other 


244 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


friends  of  the  fugitives  and  slaves.  I  was  convinced  of  one  fact  by  my 
conversation  with  him,  viz. :  that  intelligent  Southern  men  are  infinitely 
better  acquainted  with  our  proceedings  at  the  North  than  we  generally 
suppose. 

We  had  but  one  sermon,  as  our  boat  was  so  injured  that  we  could  not 
proceed  for  some  hours,  and  this  threw  everything  in1o  confusion.  More 
oaths  I  never  heard  in  the  same  length  of  time. 

Monday  morning,  September  9th,  about  two  hours  before  day,  we  struck 
a  sand-bar,  which  frightened  the  passengers  as  well  as  myself.  All 
were  preparing  for  a  general  rush  into  the  water,  but  as  no  accident  hap- 
pened, at  11  o'clock  we  reached  St.  Louis,  or  Illinoistown,  opposite  St. 
Louis,  and  at  1  o'clock  we  reached  Brooklyn,  111.,  and  had  a  kind  reception 
by  many  of  our  brethren  of  the  Indiana  Conference.  Brooklyn  is  also 
opposite  St.  Louis,  and  mostly  inhabited  by  colored  friends.  Of  Brooklyn 
I  will  speak  more  fully  in  another  number,  and  until  then  adieu. 

J.  M.  Brown. 

The  meeting  of  the  churches  in  the  Baltimore  District  for  1851 
was  marked  by  great  excitement  of  spirit  and  irregularity  of  de- 
cision. Four  brethren  were  ordained  elders — Rev.  William  D. 
Schureman,  Samuel  Watts,  I.  R.  V.  Morgan  and  Ed.  I.  Hawkins. 
Bishop  Quinn  announced  Rev.  W.  Nazery  his  assistant  or  suf- 
fragan Bishop  till  the  next  ensuing  General  Conference,  agree- 
ably to  Discipline;  and  that  we  may  know  how  this  appoint- 
ment was  in  harmony  with  the  Discipline  we  are  referred  to 
page  72,  section  3.  Bishop  Quinn  followed  in  this  particular  the 
example  set  him  by  Bishops  Allen  and  Brown.  Bishop  Allen 
made  Elder  Morris  Brown  his  assistant  two  or  three  years  prior 
to  his  election  by  the  General  Conference,  and  Bishop  Brown 
made  Elders  Edward  Waters  and  W.  P.  Quinn  his  assistants 
before  the  General  Conference  had  elected  them;  and  thus  did 
both  the  first  and  the  second  Bishops  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
pave  the  way  for  the  election  of  their  predecessors. 

A  case  came  before  this  Conference  which  it  seems  wise  to  note 
because  of  the  principle  involved.  A  pastor  and  his  chief  stew- 
ard disagreed  in  regard  to  the  amount  needful  for  the  former's 
support.  At  the  ensuing  Quarterly  Meeting  or  Official  Board, 
and  .in  the  absence  of  the  steward,  complaint  was  made  against 
him,  and  he  was  deposed.  Subsequently,  charges  were  brought 
against  the  said  steward,  and  a  committee  was  formed  to  examine 
him.  In  violation  of  the  Discipline,  one  of  the  committee  was 
neither  a  local  preacher  nor  an  exhorter.  They  proceeded,  how- 
ever, to  examine  the  case,  and  found,  in  their  opinion,  sufficient 
cause  to  suspend  him  until  the  ensuing  Quarterly  Conference. 


Tk  church,^  1849-1861. 


245 


Meanwhile  the  steward  exercised  his  functions  as  a  preacher  and 
a  deacon  by  burying  or  assisting  in  burying  the  dead,  by  marry- 
ing a  couple1  and  by  christening  one  or  more  children.  lie  justi- 
fied himself  Torso  doing  by  asserting  that  the  committee  which 
suspended  him  was  illegal,  and  therefore  the  suspension  was 
null  and  void,  or,  in  other  words,  he  was  under  no  obligations  to 
heed  it.  At  the  ensuing  Quarterly  Conference  the  said  steward 
was  tried,  in  his  absence,  and  pronounced  expelled.  He  gave  as 
a  reason  for  his  absence  that  he  could  not  hope  for  a  fair  trial,  as 
the  majority  were  opposed  to  him.  But  the  same  Quarterly 
Conference  adjourned  their  meeting  after  the  trial  to  another 
night,  at  which  time  the  steward  sent  in  his  appeal,  or  signified 
his  intention  to  appeal  to  the  approaching  Annual  Conference, 
of  which  he  was  a  mem  her.  Pending  this  appeal,  the  pastor 
held  a  love  feast,  and  declared  that  the  said  steward  was  excom- 
municated; then  he  soon  after  met  the  Quarterly  Conference, 
and  finished  its  business,  utterly  disregarding  the  appeal  which 
was  laid  before  him.  The  steward  presented  his  appeal  at  the 
Annual  Conference,  the  minutes  of  the  proceedings  of  his  trial 
were  read,  and,  "on  motion,  the  proceedings  of  the  Quarterly 

Conference  in  the  case  of  "  were  "ratified"  by  a  vote  of 

23  to  15.  A  few  days  later  in  the  session  the  following  was  pre- 
sented to  the  Conference  by  a  brother: 

Whereas,  In  view  of  all  the  circumstances  by  which  the  case  of  Brother 
 is  surrounded, 

Resolved,  That  he  be  restored  to  his  official  standing  in  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church. 

A  long  and  spirited  debate  followed,  wherein  it  was  claimed 
that  this  Annual  Conference  had  no  power  given  it  by  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  to  restore  a  man  back  to  the  Quarterly  Confer- 
ence by  which  he  was  expelled,  after  the  Annual  Conference 
itself  had  ratified  their  doings  in  the  case,  without  the  consent 
of  the  said  Quarterly  Conference.  Again,  it  was  claimed  that 
the  last  motion  said  nothing  about  the  steward's  restoration  to 
Bethel  Church,  but  its  object  was  to  restore  him  to  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  so  that  he  could  join  where  he  chose.  But  the  resolu- 
tion prevailed,  and  the  steward  was  restored — not  to  Bethel 
Church,  the  particular  society  from  which  he  had  been  expelled, 
but  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church — to  the  entire  Connection ! 

There  are  some  points  here  worthy  of  the  attention  of  history, 
and  of  all  who  understand  the  science  of  government,  both  civil 


246 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


and  ecclesiastical.  We  see  here  claimed  that  an  inferior  court  is 
above  the  superior;  the  court  in  which  a  man's  case  is  first  tried 
is  above  the  appellate  court,  and,  therefore,  has  the  right  and 
power  to  dictate  what  it  shall  and  what  it  shall  not  do  with  the 
condemned,  who  has  appealed  from  its  decisions  to  those  whose 
duty  it  is  to  redress  the  wrongs  inflicted  by  oppressors.  The  ab- 
surdity of  this  view  of  the  subject  is  apparent.  Every  one  ac- 
quainted with  the  government  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
knows  that  the  Annual  Conference  is  the  court  of  appeals  to  the 
local  minister,  and  that  the  object  of  such  a  court  is  that  the 
errors  committed  by  the  lower  court  may  be  corrected.  Take 
away  this  power  and  the  appellate  court  not  only  becomes  use- 
less, but  it  is  a  solemn  mockery.  What  would  become  of  Church 
or  state  if  such  an  unreasonable  and  tyrannical  doctrine  should 
become  universal?  Who  ever  heard  of  the  supreme  court  of  a 
state,  or  of  the  United  States,  sending  to  the  lower  court  to  ob- 
tain its  "consent"  to  reverse  one  of  its  decisions?  Then,  too, 
the  Annual  Conference  itself  did  wrong  in  ratifying  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  said  Quarterly  Conference:  First,  because  the 
committee  of  examination  was  improperly  formed,  as  the  rule  of 
discipline  requires  that  it  consist  of  local  preachers,  "or,  for  want 
of  preachers,  as  many  exhorters  or  leaders."  But  one  of  that 
committee  was  neither  preacher,  exhort er,  nor  leader.  Second, 
because  the  Quarterly  Conference  was  in  duty  bound  to  correct 
the  error  of  the  committee,  and  inasmuch  as  it  did  not,  the  An- 
nual Conference  was  in  duty  bound  to  send  the  case  back  to  the 
Quarterly  Conference  in  order  that  they  and  all  others  might 
learn  to  do  their  work  according  to  rule.  Third,  because  the 
Quarterly  Conference  had  no  power  to  expel  the  said  steward  or 
any  other  local  preacher,  for,  from  1820  to  1856,  the  Quarterly 
Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  had  its  power  in  the  case  of 
a  local  preacher,  deacon  or  elder,  limited  to  acquittal,  censure  or 
suspension;  it  had  no  power  to  expel. 

No  such  rule  that,  when  the  Connection  was  formed  in  1816, 
provided  for  the  trial  of  a  local  preacher  by  the  Quarterly 
Conference,  was  incorporated  in  the  government  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  at  "that  day."  The  historical  fact  is  this:  In  the  con- 
vention of  1816,  when  and  where  the  Connection  was  formed, 
they — the  immortal  Allen  and  his  illustrious  associates — made 
no  provisions  for  the  trial  of  preachers,  neither  local  nor  travel- 
ing.   The  organic  law,  which  is  nothing  more  than  restriction  or 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


247 


limitation  of  the  power  of  the  General  Conference,  was  this: 
"They  shall  not  do  away  the  privilege  of  our  ministers  or 
preachers  of  a  trial  by  a  committee,  and  of  an  appeal." 

Upon  this  negative  organic  law  they  made  no  enactments,  ex- 
cepting in  the  case  of  a  Bishop,  and  in  doing  so,  they  violated 
this  very  law  by  depriving  him  of  the  right  of  appeal. 

The  fact  that  traveling  elders  have  habitually  expelled  local 
preachers,  deacons  and  elders  in  the  Quarterly  Conference  is  no 
proof  that  it  is  lawful  or  right;  on  the  contrary,  a  habit  or  cus- 
tom, unsanctioned  by  law,  is  nothing  more  than  "antiquated 
error." 

It  has  heen  said  that  "our  opponents  tell  us  that  the  Quarterly 
Conference  can  try  the  case  of  a  local  preacher,  hut  has  no  power 
to  suspend  him.  If  they  mean  anything  by  such  a  remark,  it 
must  be  this:  that  a  court  authorized  to  try  a  man  for  a  crime 
has  no  power  to  inflict  the  punishment."  In  answer  to  the  first 
proposition  it  may  he  said  that  the  power  of  the  Quarterly  Con- 
ference to  suspend  a  convicted  local  preacher  has  never  been 
denied,  but  its  power  to  expel,  under  the  rule  in  question,  has 
been  denied;  and,  in  respect  to  the  second,  we  give  this  reply: 
A  court  has  authority  to  try  a  man  for  a  crime,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  has  no  power  to  inflict  punishment.  This  is  really  the 
case  in  the  state.  A  court  tries  a  man  for  theft  and  convicts  him 
of  that  crime,  but  it  has  no  power  to  punish  him.  The  punish- 
ment is  left  to  the  sheriff,  who  takes  the  convict  and  places  him 
in  the  penitentiary,  to  be  punished  there.  Again,  a  court  may 
try  and  convict  a  man  for  murder,  but  that  court  has  no  power 
to  punish  him.  The  judge  pronounces  the  sentence  of  death, 
but  he  has  no  power  to  execute  it;  and  if  he  or  any  of  the  jury, 
or  the  whole  of  them,  were  to  hang  such  a  convict,  they  them- 
selves could  he  arrested,  tried,  convicted  and  hung  for  such  an  act. 
To  set  the  absurdity  and  injustice,  as  well  as  the  illegality  of  such 
proceedings,  clearly  before  us,  let  us  note  a  case  in  point.  Our 
Discipline,  from  1816  to  1856,  gave  power  to  a  committee,  or  a 
court,  consisting  of  a  given  number  of  elders,  etc.,  to  arrest,  try, 
convict  and  suspend  a  Bishop  in  the  interval  of  the  General 
Conference.  But,  suppose  that  Bishop  Quinn  or  Bishop  Nazery 
had  been  tried  and  convicted  by  such  a  committee,  or  court, 
and  that  committee,  or  court,  should  have  proceeded  to  expel 
him,  would  anybody  have  submitted  to  it?  Would  not  every 
man,  free  from  prejudice  and  loving  the  truth,  as  well  as 


248 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


justice,  have  said  that  the  committee  had  overleaped  its  power- 
done  what  it  had  neither  power  nor  right  to  do,  and  inflicted  a 
grievous  outrage  upon  the  Bishop? 

That  the  view  taken  by  some  of  the  ministry  was  that  illus- 
trated in  the  foregoing  statements,  may  be  seen  in  the  subjoined 
protest,  which  was  drawn  up  and  signed  by  thirteen  of  the 
brethren  present : 

THE  PROTEST 

Of  the  Minority  Against  the  Majority  of  Those  who  Voted,  in  the 
Thirty-fourth  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  for 
the  Baltimore  District,  to  Sustain  the  Doings  and  Decisions 
of  the  Quarterly  Conference  of  Bethel  Church  Against  the 
Rev.   . 

We  protest  against  the  decision  of  the  Annual  Conference  and  also  of 
the  Quarterly  Conference — 

1st.  Because  we  believe  that  both  of  them  have  violated  the  written  law 

of  the  General  Conference  in  the  expulsion  of  the  said  Rev.   from 

the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  thereby  have  done  the  said  gentleman  a  serious 
and  a  grievous  wrong.  We  base  our  protest  upon  the  following  argument: 
The  Quarterly  Conference  is  the  lowest  court  in  which  a  local  preacher  can 
be  tried  by  our  Connection.  This  court  was  wisely  created  by  the  General 
Conference,  and  invested  with  a  particular  power,  to  be  exercised  in  the 
case  of  every  local  preacher  brought  before  it  as  an  accused  person.  But 
the  General  Conference  did  also  define  the  power  which  it  gave  to  the 
Quarterly  Conference,  in  order  that  it  might  know  where  to  begin  and 
whereto  stop.  Now,  what  is  this  definition?  Hear  it:  "The  Quarterly 
Conference  shall  have  power  to  clear,  censure,  or  suspend  him."  Here  it 
may  begin,  but  there  it  must  end.  It  may  begin  with  clearing,  but  it  must 
end  with  suspension  ;  beyond  this  limit  it  cannot  go  without  trampling  the 
law  under  its  feet  and  inflicting  an  injury  upon  the  accused. 

To  clear,  to  censure,  to  suspend,  are  not  words  of  doubtful  meaning.  It 
would  argue  supreme  folly  in  the  man  who  would  attempt  to  make  them 
signify  expulsion.  And  yet  this  very  thing  has  been  done  by  the  Quarterly 
Conference  ;  this  very  thing  has  been  confirmed  by  the  Annual  Conference. 
God  tells  us,  that  when  he  made  the  seas  He  also  brake  up  for  it  a  "  decreed 
place  and  set  bars  and  doors,  and  said,  '  Hitherto  shalt  thou  come,  but  no 
further,  and  here  shall  thy  proud  waves  be  stayed.'  "  Now,  why  all  this? 
Why  this  decree?  Why  these  bars  and  these  doors?  Because,  He  knew 
as  long  as  the  sea  flowed  in  this  decreed  place  and  stayed  within  these  bars 
and  doors  its  undulating  waters  would  prove  a  blessing  to  mankind,  but 
whensover  it  forsook  this  decreed  place  and  overleaped  these  bars  and 
these  doors  they  must  inevitably  be  destructive  to  mankind.  This  is  true 
of  civil  courts — if  they  have  a  decreed  power  the)  also  have  a  limitation 
set  to  this  power,  and  if  they  exercise  it  in  a  wrong  direction,  or  over- 
leap the  fixed  boundaries,  it  always  inflicts  an  injury  upon  society.  And 
thus  is  it  with  the  Church.    If  ever  its  courts  put  forth  their  power  in  a 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


249 


wrong  direction,  or  leap  oyer  the  decreed  limitations,  they  inflict  the  most 
grievous  wrongs  upon  the  people.  Here,  then,  is  the  ground  of  our  pro- 
test. We  believe  the  Quarterly  Conference  and  the  Annual  Conference 
have  overleaped  their  boundaries,  and  inflicted  a  grievous  wrong  upon  one 
of  the  best  of  their  members — one  of  the  noblest  of  their  champions,  w  ho 
fought  their  battles  and  achieved  their  victories. 

2d.  We  protest  because  we  feel  that  there  is  no  security  for  a  minister's 
reputation,  standing  and  usefulness  while  such  outrages  are  allowed.  The 
arm  of  tyranny  which  struck  down  our  brother  on  yesterday  may  strike 
us  down  to-morrow.  [Signed]  DAKIBL  A.  Payne, 

Thomas  C.  Oliver, 
William  Thomas  Catto, 
I.  R.  V.  Morgan, 
William  D.  W.  Schureman, 
Thomas  W.  Henry, 
Robert  Collins, 
Stephen  Smith, 
William  Webb, 
Jacob  M.  Moore, 
William  H.  Warti  rs, 
J.  H.  Henson, 
James  A.  Shorter. 

There  is  another  duty  that  history  has  to  perform,  and  that  is 
to  express  her  dissent  from  another  decision  in  this  case — that  a 
"suspended  member  could  not  appeal  to  tin.'  Annual  Confer- 
ence."* 

Now,  suspension  is  an  act  of  punishment  awarded  by  an  eccle- 
siastical court  lor  some  offence,  real  or  imaginary,  committed  by 
one  holding  office  under  its  authority-.  But  if  the  person  upon 
whom  such  a  punishment  has  been  inflicted  believes  it  unjust, 
he  has  no  right  of  appeal  to  a  superior  court  for  redres- '. 

Slaves  may  remain  silent  under  such  a  decision — a  freeman 
never  will,  never  can.  A  man  too  ignorant  to  know  the  differ- 
ence between  right  and  wrong  in  ecclesiastical  forms  and  govern- 
ment, may  remain  mute;  but  one  who  knows  better,  never  can 
do  so  without  being  recreant  to  his  honest  convictions.  It  is  the 
part  of  the  historian,  meeting  such  judicial  decisions,  to  discuss 
their  merits,  approving  or  condemning  in  the  spirit  of  love  and 
the  meekness  of  wisdom,  as  he  has  endeavored  to  do  in  this  case, 
which  came  up  before  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1851. 

Other  business  of  the  Conference  was  to  elect  the  delegates  to 


'  This  decision  of  the  Baltimore  Annual  and  Quarterly  Conferences 
was  a  violation  of  the  third  restrictive  rule  of  the  General  Confer*  nee. 


250 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


the  ensuing  General  Conference.  The  result  of  the  election  was 
the  choice  of  the  following  eleven  brethren  :  Revs.  Savage  L. 
Hammond,  John  Jordan,  Robert  M.  Smith,  John  Gaines,  Caleb 
Hall,  Thomas  Williams,  William  Webb,  Christopher  Jones, 
James  Read,  Robert  Boston,  Charles  Sawyer. 

This  was  the  last  Conference  that  was  attended  by  the  Rev. 
J.  M.  Moore,  for  he  sailed  the  next  autumn  for  Liberia.  He  was 
a  gifted  man,  well  read  in  both  medicine  and  law,  and  one  of 
the  most  eloquent  preachers  that  ever  graced  the  pulpit  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church. 

The  approximate  number  of  members  in  the  Baltimore  Dis- 
trict this  year  was  ascertained  to  be  four  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  seventy. 

The  condition  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  this  year  seems  to 
have  been  flourishing.  The  American  Colonization  Society  was 
brought  forward  for  consideration,  and  the  feelings  and  opinions 
of  the  Conference  upon  the  subject  are  indicated  in  the  resolu- 
tions offered  by  J.  J.  G.  Bias,  Stephen  Smith  and  William  T. 
Catto,  which  were  adopted.    They  read  as  follows: 

Whereas,  That  detestable  scheme,  the  colonization  movement,  is  again 
formidably  presented  to  the  public  for  their  support,  and  every  means  set 
on  foot  to  destroy  the  fixedness  of  this,  our  people,  in  this  their  native 
country  ;  and 

Whereas,  Our  religious  and  moral  institutions  must  be  disbanded  in 
the  event  of  its  success.    Be  it,  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  Conference  that  the  highest  object 
of  colonization  is  to  remove,  as  it  has  removed,  a  large,  increasing  and  im- 
proving free  population,  that  they  may  hold  our  brethren  the  more  quietly 
and  safely  in  chains. 

Resolved,  That  we  earnestly  recommend  the  ministers  of  all  denomina- 
tions to  exert  their  influence  against  the  direful  tendency  in  carrying  out 
the  above  project. 

Be  it  further  resolved,  That  this  Conference  recommend  to  its  members 
to  suspicion  the  motives  and  spurn  the  advice  of  any  and  every  man  or 
minister,  be  he  white  or  colored,  who  shall  attempt  to  disturb  and  unsettle 
the  institutions  that  exist  among  us  by  attacking  the  permanency  of  our 
people  in  their  native  land. 


Rev.  Dr.  Willis,  of  Canada  West,  having  addressed  the  Con- 
ference, Rev.  A.  R.  Green  presented  the  document  hereafter 
presented.     It  is  worthy -a  place  in  history,  and  as  it  was 


Committee. 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


251 


unanimously  adopted  by  the  Conference,  it  gave  unmistakable 
evidence  of  the  abhorrence  with  which  the  people  and  churches 
of  the  Philadelphia  District  looked  upon  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law 
of  the  American  Congress,  and  of  the  deep  gratitude  of  their 
hearts  for  the  generous  spirit  evinced  by  the  English  people: 

As  the  time  has  arrived  when  it  lias  become  the  duty  of  this  Annual 
Conference  to  make  an  expression  to  the  people  on  the  subject  of  our 
condition  in  this  country,  and  our  feelings  toward  the  British  Government 
for  the  benevolence  exhibited  in  this  time  of  peril  and  danger  to  the  lib- 
erty of  the  colored  race  of  these  United  States — 

Whereas,  The  British  nation,  under  the  reign  and  royal  majesty  of 
Queen  Victoria,  has,  by  its  acts  and  deeds,  shown  a  disposition  to  be  friendly 
to  the  negro  in  this  time  of  oppression  and  enormous  injustice  and  cruelty 
by  the  government  of  this  Republic  and  states  of  this  Union  to  the  native 
freeborn  colored,  as  well  as  the  slave  population,  actually  exposing  them 
(free  colored  persons)  to  all  the  perils  of  interminable  bondage  from  one 
end  of  the  country  to  the  other,  and  yet  adding  insult  to  injury  by  using 
their  prejudice  to  force  them  from  the  homes  of  youth  and  land  of  birth 
to  the  shores  of  Africa  ;  and 

Whereas,  The  people  of  Great  Britain,  viewing  the  cruelty  of  this 
government  and  nation,  styled  a  "Free  Republic,"  against  the  thousands 
and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  her  home-born  children  without  cause,  have 
arisen,  and,  to  stamp  those  wicked  emanations  called  laws,  enacted  for  our 
destruction  in  this  country,  as  acts  of  barbarism  and  of  the  dark  ages,  and 
beneath  the  dignity  of  any  enlightened  and  civilized  people,  have  pub- 
lished to  the  world,  and  by  sheltering  the  panting  fugitive  when  escaping 
from  this  land  of  blood,  proved  their  Christian  sympathy  for  us  by  open- 
ing their  dominions  and  inviting  us  to  the  enjoyments  of  equal  privileges 
with  the  natural-born  British  subjects,  and  that  when  this  prejudice  of  the 
American  people,  or  a  majority  of  them,  is  falsely  asserting  that  the  black 
and  white  race  cannot  possibly  live  together  on  equality,  thereby  giving 
that  libel  on  the  character  of  God  its  true  coloring,  and  exposing  the  fabri- 
cators to  their  own  shame  for  attempting  to  impose  upon  the  wise  and 
beneficent  Creator  the  injustice  of  having  omitted  to  appoint  to  us  the 
bounds  of  our  habitation,  but  left  it  entirely  with  our  paler  American 
brethren  to  choose  it  for  us— first,  by  forcing  our  ancestors  in  part  from  the 
land  of  their  birth  and  enslaving  them ;  and  second,  by  removing  their 
posterity  to  another  land  as  the  only  place  where  the  fostering  hand  of  the 
Creator  will  be  over  us ;  and 

Whereas,  The  entire  treatment  of  the  majority  of  the  American  people 
is  and  has  been  such  that  so  long  as  slavery  exists,  and  colored  people  can 
be  sold  here,  there  never  will  be  confidence  enough  reposed  in  them  to 
take  us  in  Ebony,  nor  any  other  steam  vessel,  across  the  ocean.    Therefore,  y 

Resolved,  That  under  existing  circumstances,  in  our  judgment,  it  is  un-  ^ 
wise  and  disadvantageous  as  well  as  impolitic  for  us  to  resolve  that  we  will 
not  leave  the  United  States,  as  every  such  resolve  only  goes  to  stamp  us  as 


252 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


V  being  willing  to  suffer  anything  that  may  be  imposed  upon  us  rather  than 
remove  or  emigrate,  thereby  encouraging  our  enemies  to  greater  aggres- 
sions, and  emboldening  them  in  their  encroachments  on  our  liberty,  and 
discouraging  our  friends,  who  are  willing  to  receive  us  as  part  and  parcel 
of  their  people,  free  and  untrammeled  from  the  powers  of  wicked  laws. 

Resolved,  That  the  action  of  the  British  people,  by  a  renewal  of  their 
sympathy  for  us,  and  inviting  the  long  injured  race  and  people  of  this 
boasted  land  of  liberty — the  colored  people — to  the  enjoyment  of  the  bless- 
ings of  liberty  and  equality,  have  won  our  entire  confidence  and  highest 
regard. 

Resolved,  That  the  benevolent  exhibition  of  the  people  of  Her  Royal 
Majesty  in  the  province  of  Canada  in  granting  protection  and  support  to 
the  thousands  of  our  race  who  were  forced  from  their  homes  in  the  dreary 
season  of  the  year  have  proved  themselves  true  patriots  and  friends  of 
human  liberty. 

Resolved,  That  the  kindness  of  the  British  people  in  opening  their  hearts 
and  inviting  us  at  this  crisis  to  their  land  to  enjoy  the  precious  boon  of 
liberty  and  fraternity  from  the  prejudice  of  American  Christianity,  is  a 
withering  rebuke  to  the  Christians  of  this  land  who  are  striving  to  encour- 
age the  unholy  principle  at  war  with  the  spirit  of  the  religion  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  of  separation  of  color. 

Resolved,  That  we  will  ever  cherish  the  fondest  reminiscences  of  the 
people  who,  in  the  time  of  persecution,  have  come  forward  and  held  out 
to  us  a  helping  hand  at  this  time  of  affliction  and  distress  of  our  people. 

Resolved,  That  as  a  religious  body  we  will  ever  pray  for  the  peace  and 
prosperity  of  the  British  Government,  and  shall,  when  emigrating  from 
this  land  of  oppression,  seek  our  homes  in  Her  Majesty's  dominions. 

Resolved,  That  copies  of  this  preamble  and  resolutions  be  forwarded  to 
Her  Royal  Majesty  Queen  Victoria,  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain,  and 
the  Governor  Generals  of  the  Provinces  of  Canada  and  British  West 
Indies,  as  testimonials  of  our  grateful  remembrance  of  their  philanthropic 
acts  toward  us. 

But  the  Fugitive  Slave  Bill  produced  more  than  this  bitter 
outburst  of  feeling  against  the  United  States;  it  forced  many  of 
the  best  families  of  color  to  seek  an  asylum  in  Western  Canada, 
where  they  were  safe  alike  from  two-legged  and  four-legged  blood- 
hounds. 

Brother  Jeremiah  Biddle,  a  local  preacher,  was  one  of  the 
members  who  had  departed  this  life,  and  the  deaths  of  two  other 
brothers  belonging  to  the  Connection  called  forth  an  expression 
of  fraternal  regard  highly  creditable  to  the  Conference.  The 
two  were  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  at  the  time  of  his  death  a  mem- 
ber of  the  New  York  Conference,  and  Rev.  Noah  C.  W.  Cannon, 
the  master-spirit  of  the  Canadian  churches.  Their  prominence 
in  the  history  of  the  A.  M.*E.  Church  calls  for  the  insertion  of 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


253 


the  resolutions  passed  in  relation  to  the  loss  suffered  by  their 
decease.  In  relation  to  Brother  Hogarth,  the  following  is  on 
record : 

Whereas,  It  hath  pleased  Almighty  God  to  remove  from  his  earthly 
field  of  usefulness  the  Rev,  George  Hogarth,  a  local  deacon  in  the  A.  M.  E3. 
Church,  and  formerly,  for  the  period  of  twelve  years,  the  general  book 
steward  of  our  Connection  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  we,  the  members  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference, 
do  hereby  express  our  sympathy  and  condolence  with  the  family  of  the 
deceased  for  their  irreparable  loss. 

Resolved,  That  we  also  express  our  high  esteem  for  the  excellent  charac- 
ter of  the  Rev.  George  Hogarth,  who,  as  a  deacon  in  the  church  of  Brook- 
lyn, and  a  general  book  steward  of  the  Connection,  did  prove  himself  a 
man  worthy  of  the  confidence  of  his  brethren  and  the  grateful  remem- 
brance of  the  Church  in  general. 

Resolved,  That  we  transmit  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  to  the  family  of 
the  deceased  by  the  hand  of  a  committee  of  three  members  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Annual  Conference. 

A  committee,  consisting  of  J.  P.  Campbell,  J.  Beulah  and  A. 
Cuppen,  was  also  appointed  to  draw  up  an  "  essay  "  on  the  life 
and  death  of  the  lamented  N.  C.  W.  Cannon,  who,  after  due  con- 
sideration, produced  a  similar  series  of  resolutions,  from  which 
we  take  the  historical  fact  that  Rev.  Noah  Caldwell  W.  Cannon 
died  in  the  town  of  Amherstburg,  Canada  West,  on  the  12th  day 
of  September,  1850;  that  he  had  "traveled  in  the  Connection  in 
perilous  times,"  and  was  "  one  of  the  first  pioneers  in  the  cause  of 
our  beloved  Zion;"  also  that  he  labored  "extensively  for  the 
good  of  the  race  and  benefit  of  the  people  at  large." 

Brother  Hogarth  was  one  of  the  most  intelligent  ministers  in 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  In  business  tact  and  knowledge  he  had 
few  equals  and  no  superior.  His  publications  in  the  form  of 
Disciplines  and  hymn-books  were  remarkable  for  the  beauty  of 
their  mechanical  execution.  His  own  productions  were  always 
simple,  clear  and  pointed.  And,  although  not  distinguished  for 
oratory,  his  sermons  were  always  full  of  that  warmth  which 
belongs  to  the  man  whose  heart  is  right  with  God.  He  was  cut 
down  in  the  midst  of  life  and  in  the  midst  of  his  usefulness, 
respected  and  loved  by  all  who  knew  him. 

As  it  respects  Brother  Cannon,  a  long  and  intimate  acquaint- 
ance enables  the  writer  to  speak  as  one  knowing  him  well. 
Always  presenting  an  invulnerable  front,  he  was  the  uncompro- 
mising enemy  of  wickedness.    He  had  many  defects  and  com- 


254 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


mitted  many  errors,  it  is  true;  but  these  belonged  to  the  head, 
and  not  to  the  heart.  His  early  education  was  very  defective,  but 
this  was  his  misfortune,  not  his  crime.  His  mind  was  erratic 
this  was  constitutional.  These  were  his  defects.  As  to  his 
errors,  he  was  too  polemic  in  his  sermons;  for,  no  matter  what 
his  text  or  his  subject  might  be,  he  invariably  finished  by  an 
attack  upon  baptism  by  immersion,  and  he  seldom  failed  to 
make  masonic  allusions.  He  was  too  fond  of  book-making, 
while  he  had  too  little  ability  for  such  a  work.  His  first  publi- 
cation was  entitled  "The  Rock  of  Wisdom,'1  and  was  issued  in 
1834.  The  New  York  Conference  wisely  censured  him  for  it,  and 
forbade  its  republication.  A  far  more  appropriate  epithet  would 
have  been  "The  Rock  of  Folly."  It  -was  a  pretty  good  cure  for 
"the  blues;"  for  no  one  of  good  sense  could  read  it  without 
laughing,  not  on  account  of  its  wit  and  humor,  but  on  account 
of  its  absurdities,  incoherencies  and  contradictions.  One  of  his 
pamphlets  was  entitled  "  Truth — Instruction  to  Youth,  Seek  Ye 
after  Knowledge."  The  subjects  upon  which  it  treats  are  the  duty 
of  repentance,  the  Sabbath,  marriage,  immersion,  and  prejudice 
against  color.  They  were  all  heterogeneously  mixed  up  and 
incoherently  discussed— without  instruction,  without  sense  and 
without  order.  Another  was  called  "A  History  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church."  It  contains  forty-four  pages,  and,  notwithstanding  its 
failure  as  a  history,  it  may  be  pronounced  the  best  of  all  his 
writings.  From  all  wre  can  learn  Brother  Cannon  was  the  child 
of  pious  parents.  His  father  was  Beaves  Cannon,  his  mother 
Rose  Anne.  He  was  born  in  Delaware,  Sussex  County.  In  July, 
1806,  he  wras  converted  at  a  camp-meeting  between  Laureltown 
and  Salisbury,  in  Delaware.  His  father  was  nearly  seventy 
years  of  age  at  his  death;  his  mother  was  one  hundred  and  six 
years  old  at  hers.  Brother  Cannon  was  extravagantly  fond  of 
camp-meetings,  and  was  in  his  element  when  conducting  one  of 
them.  Few  men  in  our  itinerant  service  labored  so  extensively 
as  he.  He  enjoyed  a  privilege  of  which  but  few  can  boast — of 
laboring  for  his  Lord  and  Master  in  every  Conference  District  in 
the  Connection,  excepting  the  Indiana  and  Missouri.  His  last 
years  were  spent  in  efforts  to  train  and  con  firm  the  Canadian 
churches  in  the  doctrines  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ.  In  the  Col- 
chester Settlement,  C.  W.,  he  had  built  an  encampment  on  a 
piece  of  ground  which  Avas  bought  for  that  purpose,  and  also  for 
the  erection  of  a  house  of  worship.    Beside  the  pulpit  wrhere  his 


The  Churches,  L 849-1 851. 


255 


voice  had  often  poured  forth  its  thunder  tones,  beneath  deep 
shadows  of  the  forest  trees,  his  ashes  sleep  till  the  archangel's 
trump  shall  wake  them  into  life  immortal.  Over  his  grave  Lov- 
ing friends  erected  a  rustic  tomb,  made  of  young  saplings,  in  the 
form  of  a  parallelogram — a  rough  tribute  of  affection,  it  is  ren- 
dered doubly  interesting  by  being  the  sincere  and  unostentatious 
love  of  those  for  whose  spiritual  benefit  ho  had  so  zealously 
labored. 

At  the  New  York  Conference  of  1851  the  funeral  sermon  of 
ReV. George  Hogarth  was  preached;  but,  strange;  to  say,  no  obitu- 
ary notice  is  given  of  him,  notwithstanding  he  had  been  among 
the  most  useful  of  the  useful — one  of  the  leading  members  of 
this  Conference.  Revs.  Thomas  W.  Jackson  and  Jonah  Miller 
were  also  numbered  with  those  who  sleep  in  Christ.  A  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  prepare  obituary  notices  of  them, 
together  with  Brothers  Hogarth  and  Cannon,  but  it  is  evident 
that  this  duty  was  neglected. 

Brother  William  Harmon  was  inducted  into  the  office  of  dea- 
con, and  Brothers  James  M.  Williams  and  George  Stanford  into 
that  of  elders.  Resolutions  against  colonization,  identical  with 
those  of  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  were  also  passed  in  the 
New  York  body. 

An  address  to  the  brethren  in  the  West  Indies,  prepared  by  the 
committee  for  the  purpose,  was  received  and  adopted  by  the 
Conference.    It  reads: 

New  York  Annual  Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in 
America  to  (lie  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  Empire  of  Hayti,  Sendeth  Greeting: 
Beloved  Brethren: — We,  your  brethren  in  the  United  States,  feel 
indebted  to  you,  realizing  as  we  do  that  you  have  been  long  neglected  on 
our  part.  The  remembrance  of  such  neglect  gives  us  pain,  which  prompts 
us  to  renew  our  correspondence  and  intercourse  at  this  time.  Hoping  that 
the  renewal  of  this  intercourse  may  not  only  continue  but  cement  the 
bond  of  union  between  us,  notwithstanding  the  neglect  on  our  part  and 
silence  on  yours. 

We  can  assure  you,  brethren,  we  have  never  forgotten,  though  long  neg- 
lecting you.  Perhaps  the  growing  and  increasing  progress  of  our  Connec- 
tion on  this  side  of  the  water,  as  well  as  the  constant  demands  on  our 
talents  and  labors,  may,  as  much  as  anything  else,  account  for  the  neglect 
we  have  been  candid  to  confess.  It  is  not  only  our  desire  to  renew  this 
correspondence  and  certify  our  relations  with  you,  but  we  desire  to  know 
the  state  of  your  affairs  and  your  prospects. 

We  therefore  recommend,  as  conducive  to  a  nearer  relation  and  more 
constant  union,  a  correspondence  with  you  and  between  you  and  our  dis- 


256 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


trict  book  steward,  tlie  Rev.  Eli  N.  Hall,  of  Brooklyn  City.  And  also  that 
you  represent  your  Church  in  the  General  Conference,  which  meets  on  the 
first  Monday  in  May,  1852,  either  by  person  or  by  proxy. 

Your  committee  further  recommends  that  this  Conference  create  a  com- 
mittee, with  the  book  steward,  to  continue  this  correspondence.  Respect- 
fully submitted,  Richard  Robinson, 

E.  N.  Hall, 
E.  C.  Africanus, 
J.  P.  Campbell, 
T.  M.  D.  Ward. 
Henry  Hicks,  Secretary. 

Bishop  Quinn  closed  the  Conference  with  a  pithy  address  so 
full  of  sound  advice  that  it  may  be  safely  presented  as  a  matter 
of  history,  if  not  as  one  of  the  literary  efforts  of  the  year : 

Brethren  of  the  Conference : 

In  the  providence  of  God  we  met  here  on  the  29th  day  of  May.  We 
have  tilled  twenty-seven  preaching  appointments  in  the  neighboring  towns, 
and  have  had  a  good  time  together.  We  have  been  enabled  through  Di- 
vine blessing  to  conclude  our  business  as  members  of  the  New  York  Annual 
Conference  in  peace,  unity  and  love.  During  the  session  we  have  some- 
times talked  loud,  but  mostly  in  good  humor.  Our  voices  are  loud  natu- 
rally, and  we  are  apt  to  speak  so  when  nothing  ails  us.  We  can  easily  fill 
the  church  of  the  largest  capacity  in  the  land.  Even  our  women  preachers 
are  remarkable  for  power  of  voice. 

Thank  God!  we  are  at  peace  with  each  other,  and  the  affairs  of  the 
Church  are  prosperous.  External  influences  are  sufficient  to  drive  us  to 
this.  See  the  difficulties  we  encounter  from  prejudice  and  persecution — 
the  Devil  and  the  Fugitive  Law.  But  we  have  now  come  to  the  concluding 
matter  of  the  Conference,  namely,  announcing  the  appointments  for  the 
ensuing  year.  The  making  out  of  the  appointments  is  at  best  a  difficult 
and  trying  business.  So  manv  interests  are  to  be  considered.  And  when 
we  have  done  our  best,  after  all,  somebody  is  sure  to  be  disappointed  and 
displeased.  It  is  easy  to  know  how  a  brother  likes  his  appointment  by  the 
expression  of  his  countenance.  If  he  is  pleased  he  will  come  forward  and 
receive  it  with  a  smile,  but  if  not  he  will  frown. 

Brethren  must  consider  the  difference  in  talents,  abilities  and  gifts. 
Some  of  our  most  learned  preachers  and  men,  well  versed  in  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, and  possessed  of  deep  piety  and  fervent  zeal,  cannot  govern  a  people. 
Some  cannot  preach,  but  govern  well;  and  some  of  the  most  illiterate  men 
in  the  Connection  govern  best  of  all,  and  churches  prosper  in  their  hands. 

We  have  a  fine  audience  to-day  to  witness  our  proceedings.  This  is  an 
indication  of  the  prevailing  interest  felt  in  the  appointments  among  the 
people.  Some  are  here  from  all  directions  in  the  district.  Ordinary  busi- 
ness and  employment  are  laid  aside,  and  all  are  curious  to  know  "who  will 
be  our  next  preacher?"  Doubtless  there  are  some  here  who,  if  the  man 
they  imagine  will  suit  them  best  is  not  sent  to  them,  will  fly  to  their  places 


The  Churches,  1849-1861. 


257 


and  sow  seeds  of  discord  and  death  among  fche  people  !  No  man  is  fit  to  be 
iii  the  church  who  calls  a  meeting  to  know  whether  the  people  will  sustain 
the  coming  preacher  or  not.  I  would  not  license  him  to  pray  in  secret. 
No  preacher  is  fit  for  a  charge  who  goes  and  calls  the  people  together  to 
know  whether  they  will  receive  him.  Go  and  preach,  brethren  !  Do  not 
go  and  light,  for  then  yon  may  be  overcome  or  rejected.  But  go  and  preach. 
Do  not  be  controlled  by  any  man  or  by  any  set  of  men.  No  man,  no  angel, 
can  find  one  clause  in  the  canons  of  the  Church  by  which  you  maybe 
rejected.  Be  patient.  Many  a  man  who  has  been  refused  lias  afterwards 
been  sought  after  and  petitioned  for  by  the  same  people  who  at  first  re- 
jected him.  Some  of  the  preachers  kick  because  they  have  not  all  good, 
fat  appointments.  This  is  not  reasonable.  Here  the  matter  is  :  I  receive 
the  places  from  you.  Now,  give  me  all  good  places  and  I  will  give  good  places 
to  you  all.  When  a  preacher  goes  to  an  appointment,  and  the  people  will 
resist  and  starve  him  out,  it  is  wrong  for  any  other  to  go  and  preach  to 
them.  Let  them  alone.  Neither  go  to  preach,  ting,  nor  pray  for  them. 
Go  forth  in  the  spirit  of  your  station.  Do  not  go  to  cut  and  slash  up 
things  because  A  or  B  had  the  charge  there  before.  Our  work  is  not  to 
tear  down  but  to  build  up,  to  strengthen  the  things  which  remain,  that 
are  ready  to  die.  Let  not  those  on  circuits  seek  out  only  the  large  or  con- 
siderable places,  and  there  rest  in  the  enjoyment  of  ease  and  luxury,  but 
labor  for  the  good  of  souls  day  and  night.'  Be  instant  in  season  and  out  of 
season. 

Be  careful  of  imposters.  A  great  many  are  about.  There  is  one  Isaac 
Davis,  who  has  been  in  this  city  since  the  sitting  of  this  Conference.  He 
is  passing  off  for  a  fugitive  slave,  and  collecting  money.  He  has  false 
papers  purporting  to  be  from  Bishop  Waters,  Bishop  Brown,  and  even  from 
myself,  too.    I  never  gave  him  any. 

The  brethren  should  exercise  caution  in  forming  unions  with  parties  of 
men  who  have  no  permanence  or  legal  foundation— dissatisfied,  split  off,  or 
rebellious  characters.    It  is  not  wise  to  preach  for  such. 

We  should  work  together.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  when  we  look  into 
the  face  of  a  white  man  we  see  our  enemy.  A  great  many  like  to  see  us 
in  the  kitchen,  but  few  in  the  parlor.  Our  hope  is  in  God's  blessing  on  our 
own  wise,  strong,  and  well-directed  efforts. 

May  God  bless  us,  and  crown  our  labors  with  success. 

The  Canadian  churches  were  in  difficulty  this  year  1 1851),  and 
at  the  Canadian  Conference  every  minister  was  impeached  "for 
rebelling  against  the  Government  and  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  by  electing  Samuel  H.  Brown  to  superintend  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  Canada  until  the  sitting  of  the  General  Conference. 
Brown  pleaded  guilty  to  the  charge,  but  defended  himself  and 
brethren  by  showing  that  they  were  led  thus  to  act  by  the  advice 
of  the  Rev.  Edmund  Crosby,  of  the  United  States,  in  whose  judg- 
ment ho  relied,  and  whose  intelligence  and  integrity  he  respected, 
17 


258 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


He  said  that  Brother  Crosby  based  his  advice  upon  the  fact  that 
the  Canadian  churches  had  been  wilfully  neglected  by  the  author- 
ities of  the  Church  ;  that  he  was  exceedingly  sorry  for  them,  and 
that  in  consequence  of  their  neglected  condition  they  had  a  right 
to  do  whatever  they  thought  best  for  themselves. 

The  statements  of  Brother  Brown  were  attested  by  Brothers 
Helmsley,  Warren,  Taylor,  Dawson,  Smith  and  others.  Brother 
Brown  then  voluntarily  relinquished  all  claim  to  the  office  of 
general  superintendent,  and  threw  himself  upon  the  mercy  of 
the  Bishop  and  Conference  to  do  with  him  whatever  in  their  good 
judgment  they  might  think  best. 

On  motion  of  Elder  Campbell,  who  had  presented  the  charge, 
it  was  resolved  that  all  the  brethren  charged  with  rebellion  be 
forgiven.    This  put  an  end  to  all  the  difficulties. 

Rev.  Samuel  H.  Brown  cannot  be  too  highly  praised  for 
his  ready  compliance  with  what  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  required,  because  it  was  evidently  in  bis  power  to  do  the 
Connection  in  Canada  great  harm,  even  if  he  did  not  succeed  in 
its  entire  overthrow.  Had  he  been  as  turbulent,  ungovernable 
and  ambitious  as  he  was  talented  and  shrewd,  all  the  power  of 
the  Church  in  the  United  State-  would  have  been  insufficient  to 
subdue  him,  or  prevent  the  mischief  which  he  could  have  accom- 
plished. 

After  the  adjustment  of  these  difficulties,  lb-others  H.  E.  Ste- 
vens. Henry  Dawson  and  Samuel  Peterson  were  ordained  deacons, 
and  the  ordination  discourse  was  delivered  by  Rev.  J.  P.  Camp- 
bell. The  same  day  Brother  Richard  Warren  was  ordained  an 
elder — the  discourse  was  by  Rev.  Willis  Xazery.  Brothers  Henry 
Brail  and  George  Wilkerson  were  elected  delegates  to  the  General 
Conference  of  18-52. 

From  the  Colchester  Circuit  information  was  sent  to  this  Con- 
ference concerning  a  parcel  of  land,  two  hundred  acres  in  extent, 
purchased  for  the  use  of  the  Connection,  and  situated  in  the 
township  of  Sandwich.  Whereupon,  Bishop  Quinn,  his  assist- 
ant, Rev.  W.  Xazery,  and  Rev.  J.  P.  Campbell  were  authorized 
to  investigate  the  matter. 

The  spirit  of  the  Canadian  churches  in  relation  to  slavery  can 
be  seen  in  this  report  of  their  committee  to  the  Bishop  and  Con- 
ference : 

Reverend  Sirs: — Your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of 
Slavery,  etc,,  beg  leave  to  make  the  following  report: 


The  Churches,  1849-1851. 


259 


Whereas,  Shivery  is  a  most  gross  outrage  against  humanity,  and  a  posi- 
tive violation  of  every  one  of  the  ten  commandments  of  God,  and  destruc- 
tructive  of  all  political,  moral  and  religious  rights;  and 

Whereas,  Slavery  is  in  itself  theft,  murder,  robbery,  licentiousness, 
concubinage,  adultery,  and  everything  else  that  is  sinful  and  devilish  be- 
tween heaven  and  earth  ;  therefore, 

Rtsolved,  1st.  That  it  is  the  bounden  duty  of  all  our  ministers  most  faith- 
fully to  lift  up  their  voices  against  the  monstrous  iniquity,  and  more 
especially  American  slavery,  for  reasons  too  obvious  to  be  named,  it  being 
the  vilest  upon  which  the  sun  ever  shone,  and  in  defiance  of  the  laws  of 
God,  the  claims  of  humanity,  and  the  rights  of  our  poor,  outcast,  down- 
trodden brethren. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  we  will  not  open  the  doors  of  our  houses  of  worship 
t<>  any  slaveholding  preacher  or  lecturer,  or  their  aiders  and  abettors,  under 
any  circumstances  whatsoever,  where  we  have  a  knowledge  of  the  same. 

Resolved,  3d.  That  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  has  been, 
theoretically  and  practically,  anti-slavery  from  its  commencement  until  the 
present,  and  was  never  otherwise  known  to  be — empty  and  vain  assertions 
to  the  contrary,  notwithstanding. 

Resolved,  4th.  That  on  account  of  slavery,  oppression,  and  a  desire  peace- 
ably to  worship  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  their  own  consciences,  and 
to  secure  these  blessings  to  their  children  after  them,  were  the  causes  that 
impelled  our  fathers  to  found  and  establish,  by  the  grace  of  God,  this,  our 
beloved  Zion. 

J.  P.  Campbell,  "] 

G.  W.  Johnson,  j 

H.  Dawson,.  \  Committee. 
H.  E.  Stephens,  j 

L.  Anderson,  j 

At  the  Indiana  Conference  of  1851  Brother  John  A.  Warren 
was  ordained  a  deacon  and  R.  M.  Johnson  an  elder.  The  dele- 
gates elected  to  the  approaching  General  Conference  were  John 
Garrow,  William  Douglas,  James  Dubois,  Abram  T.  Hall,  Fred- 
erick Myers,  William  H.  Rice,  J.  L.  Johnson  and  Jacob  Green. 
To  support  this  delegation,  together  with  the  itinerants,  an  agent 
was  appointed  in  Rev.  B.  Parker. 

Israel  Cole  and  William  H.  Jones  were  the  members  of  the 
Annual  Conference  who  had  died  during  the  year.  Of  the  former 
it  is  said  that  he  had  been  an  itinerant  for  nearly  nine  years,  and 
had  "labored  ardently  for  the  salvation  of  souls." 

Among  the  resolutions  we  find  the  Conference  favoring  the 
presiding  eldership,  and  resolving  to  memorialize  the  ensuing 
General  Conference  on  the  quota  of  representation,  so  as  to  re- 
duce the  delegation  at  least  one-half. 


260 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


In  compliance  with  a  petition  from  the  First  Colored  Metho- 
dist Church  in  Sacramento,  Cal.,  it  was  received  into  the  Con- 
nection and  placed  under  the  control  of  this  Conference.  One 
Discipline,  one  hymn-book,  a  few  copies  of  the  Christian  Herald 
and  twenty-five  copies  of  the  minutes  were  ordered  to  he  scut  to 
the  church  at  Sacramento,  and  Rev.  W.  R.  Revels  was  authorized 
to  write  them  a  letter.  Pastoral  letters  were  also  to  he  written  to 
the  churches  in  New  Orleans  and  Louisville,  Ky.,  hut  no  traces 
are  to  he  found  of  them. 

In  regard  to  the  establishment  of  a  seminary  within  the  hounds 
of  this  Conference  district,  the  agent,  Rev.  R.  M.  Johnson,  who 
had  been  appointed  to  raise  moneys  for  the  same,  reported  a 
failure  in  consequence  of  the  "black  laws"  of  the  states  of  Indiana, 
Illinois,  etc.  Tin-  same  brother  was  appointed  missionary  to 
California,  hut  never  went,  because  the  means  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses  of  his  journey  were  not  raised. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


BISHOP  MORRIS  BROWN. 

His  Death  in  1S49 — An  Extraordinary  Man — A  Christian  and  a  Minister — 
Itinerant  Duties  Over  Thirteen  States  — His  Early  Training— His  Personal 
Appearance — Abreast  the  Age  in  Spirit— One  of  His  Sermons — Discourse 
pf  Rey.  A.  W.  Wayman  on  the  Death  of  Bishop  Brown— Lines  Written 
Upon  His  Death. 

THE  Rt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown  was  among  those  numbered  with 
the  dead  in  1849.  The  following  is  the  obituary  sketch 
which,  by  appointment,  was  drawn  up  at  the  time: 

The  Rt.  Rev.  Morrid  Brown,  the  second  Bishop  or  superintendent  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church,  died  on  the  9th  of  May,  1849,  at  5  o'clock  a.m.,  aged 
seventy-nine  years  and  four  months. 

He  was  a  man  of  extraordinary  character,  considered  in  a  moral  and 
religious  point  of  view.  He  was  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  and  in  early 
life  gave  promise  of  a  great  and  glorious  manhood  by  his  strict  regard  for 
the  principles  of  rectitude.  This  youthful  promise  was  fully  realized  in 
mature  life,  at  which  period  he  obtained  a  change  of  heart  by  faith  in  the 
atoning  blood  of  the  Son  of  God.  Thenceforward,  his  career,  both  as  a 
private  and  public  character,  was  an  illustrious  comment  upon  the  declara- 
tion of  the  wisest  of  oriental  kings:  "The  path  of  the  just  is  as  the  shin- 
ing light,  which  shineth  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day." 

As  a  husband  and  father  he  was  affectionate,  watchful  and  provident : 
ever  setting  before  his  family  an  example  that  pointed  them  to  the  "  Lamb 
of  God  which  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world."  As  a  citizen,  he  held 
the  laws  of  his  country  in  sacred  regard,  and  paid  a  religious  reverence  to 
the  authority  of  the  civil  magistrate,  rendering  unto  Caesar  the  things  that 
are  Cesar's.  As  a  friend,  he  was  faithful  even  to  a  fault.  As  a  man,  he 
treated  all  men  as  brothers:  this  could  be  attested  by  many,  both  on  earth 
and  in  heaven.  If  the  poor  asked  alms,  he  freely  gave  and  sent  them  away 
rejoicing.  If  a  neighbor  in  straitened  circumstances  applied  for  help  it 
was  granted,  to  the  utmost  of  his  power.  If  the  slave  solicited  means 
to  obtain  liberty,  the  fetters  soon  fell  from  his  limbs,  and  he  stood 
erect  in  the  majesty  of  his  holy  freedom.  As  a  Christian,  he  lived  with 
his  eyes  in  eternity  and  his  heart  in  heaven.  As  a  minister  of  the  Gospel, 
he  was  zealous,  devout,  irreproachable.  As  a  Bishop  in  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  he  endured  much  hardship,  privation  and  suffering  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  itinerant  duties  over  thirteen  states  in  the  union,  pursuing  a 
course  of  conduct  which  was  entirely  free  from  arrogance,  pride  and 

(261) 


262 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


tyranny,  accomplishing  much  good  in  the  cause  of  the  Redeemer,  until,  in 
the  summer  of  1844,  while  discharging  his  episcopal  functions  in  the  An- 
nual Conference  of  Upper  Canada,  his  glorious  career  was  arrested  by  a 
stroke  of  paralysis,  beneath  which  he  was  literally  fading  away  until  the 
day  and  hour  already  mentioned,  when  he  closed  his  eyes  upon  his 
bereaved  widow,  his  mourning  children,  and  the  scenes  of  this  dark  world, 
to  open  them  amidst  the  light  and  glories  of  the  upper  sanctuary. 

The  statements  we  now  add  will  doubtless  be  gratifying  to  the 
friends  of  the  Bishop,  and  at  the  same  time  they  will  shed  light 
on  his  character.  He  was  one  of  those  unfortunate  men  of  the 
Southern  States  who  had  no  early  literary  training  nor  one 
chance  of  obtaining  it  until  the  cares  of  a  large  and  growing 
family  had  rendered  it  impossible.  He  was  full  six  feet  high,  if 
not  more,  and  well  proportioned,  hut  not  corpulent.  His  coun- 
tenance was  open,  sweet,  benevolent;  his  forehead  broad  and 
advancing;  his  cranium  was  full,  the  apex  very  high,  giving 
the  moral  powers  entire  control  of  the  animal  propensities;  his 
eye-  were  dark  and  small. 

As  a  preacher  he  was  behind  many  of  his  brethren.  He  was 
seldom  eloquent,  but  there  was  a  deep  tone  of  piety  running 
through  his  entire  discourse  that  always  made  an  impression  for 
good  upon  the  minds  of  his  hearers.  As  the  Bishop  never  had 
so  much  as  a  primary-school  education,  it  cannot  be  expected 
that  he  should  have  left  any  personal  records  of  his  labors,  nor 
the  exercises  of  his  mind  upon  the  various  subjects  which  daily 
engrossed  his  attention  as  the  Bishop  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
We,  and  all  who  knew  him,  can  truthfully  say,  that  notwith- 
standing all  the  literary  disadvantages  under  which  he  labored, 
he  was.  in  spirit,  abreast  of  the  age,  and  to  the  utmost  of  his 
knowledge  and  power  encouraged  the  education  of  his  people. 
We  can  furnish  no  greater  evidence  of  this  than  where  lie  is  seen 
refusing  to  ordain  a  young  itinerant  because  he  had  not  the  lit- 
erary qualifications  required  by  the  Discipline. 

The  writer  has  preserved,  for  the  information  of  posterity,  the 
substance  of  a  sermon  which  the  Bishop  preached  in  the  city 
of  Washington  in  1844.*  Not,  indeed,  in  his  own  language, 
because  he  spoke  very  broken  English;  but  it  is,  nevertheless, 
a  faithful  picture  of  his  simple  and  monotonous,  but  practical, 
style  : 

*The  writer  took  down  the  words  as  they  fell  from  his  lips. 


Bishop  Morris  Brown. 


OPENING  SERMON 

Preached  Before  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of  the  African  Method- 
ist Episcopal  Church,  Held  in  Washington,  D.  C. 

By  Kt.  Rev.  Morris  Brown. 

Hebrews  xi.  24,  25:  "  By  faith  Afo'es,  when  he  was  come  to  years,  refused  to  be 
ctilhd  the  son  of  Pharaoh's  daughter;  choosing  rather  to  suffer  affliction  with  the 
people  of  God  than  to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of  sin  for  a  season." 

While  I  endeavor  to  speak  to  you  this  morning,  my  dear  brethren  and 
sisters,  I  beg  an  interest  in  your  prayers  that  God's  blessing  may  rest  upon 
my  labors ;  fori  intend  to  speak  as  the  Lord  may  give  me  power.  My 
labors  have  been  great  and  tedious  at  the  General  Conference,  so  as  to 
fatigue  me  very  much  ;  in  addition  to  this,  I  took  a  cold  on  my  way  home, 
so  that  I  don't  feel  able  to  speak  to  you  very  long  this  morning.  And  in 
these  late  years  I  have  not  been  accustomed  to  divide  and  subdivide  my 
subjects.  I  will  speak  in  all  simplicity  and  plainness  of  speecli.  We  dis- 
cover in  the  words  selected  for  this  morning's  meditation,  my  brethren, 
that  Moses,  when  he  came  to  manhood,  preferred  suffering  affliction  with 
the  people  of  .God  than  to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of  sin.  So  we  all  ought  to 
take  his  example — forsake  the  pleasures  of  the  world,  and  choose  God  as 
our  rich  inheritance. 

We  discover,  my  brethren,  that  God  led  Moses  through  all  his  life,  and 
made  friends  for  him,  even  among  those  who  had  been  the  enemies  of  his 
injured  people.  For  when  his  mother  took  and  laid  him  in  the  bul- 
rushes, and  placed  him  upon  the  river's  bank,  among  the  flags,  she  never 
thought  that  her  babe  would  find  protection  from  the  family  of  the 
king's  daughter.  She  sent  her  maid  to  fetch  it  to  her:  the  tears  falling 
from  his  little  eyes  created  a  mother's  feeling  for  the  helpless  infant. t 
Then  said  the  sister  of  Moses,  "Shall  I  go  and  call  to  thee  a  nurse  of  the 
Hebrew  women,  that  she  may  nurse  the  child  for  thee?"  And  Pharaoh's 
daughter  said,  "Go."  So  she  went  and  called  the  mother  of  Moses,  and 
Pharaoh's  daughter  said  unto  her,  "Take  this  child  away  and  nurse  it  for 
me,  and  I  will  give  thee  thy  wages."  And  when  the  child  grew,  she 
carried  it  to  the  princess,  and  he  became  her  son,  and  she  caused  him  to 
be  educated  in  all  the  arts  and  sciences  of  the  Egyptians.  No  doubt,  my 
brethren,  that  from  the  earliest  period  of  his  life  his  mind  was  impressed 
with  a  great  sympathy  for  his  afflicted  people.  And  it  must  not  be  sup- 
posed that  he  was  without  enemies;  for,  like  Joseph,  his  standing  and 
the  peculiar  love  which  the  royal  family  bestowed  upon  him,  must  have 
excited  the  envy  of  his  neighbors ;  for  those  who  are  useful  and  men  of 
talents  are  always  disliked  by  narrow-hearted  persons.  It  will  be  recol- 
lected that  the  Children  of  Israel  wrere  led  into  Egypt  by  a  mysterious 
providence.  Joseph,  the  favorite  son  of  Israel,  for  whom  was  made  a  coat 
of  many  colors,  was  hated  by  his  brethren,  and  by  them  wras  sold  into 
Egypt ;  and  notwithstanding  he  was  by  this  circumstance  placed  in  a  very 
mean  condition,  yet  so  great  was  his  piety  that  the  favor  of  God  rested 


264 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


continually  upon  him,  which  caused  him  to  increase  in  popularity  and 
esteem  with  the  king  so  that  he  soon  became  the  greatest  man  in  the 
nation. 

In  the  midst  of  his  power  a  universal  famine  caused  his  brethren  and 
aged  father  to  remove  to  the  land  of  Egypt,  where  they  were  fed  and  pro- 
tected by  the  authority  of  the  king.  The  services  of  Joseph  secured  his 
family  and  immediate  posterity,  and  that  of  his  brethren,  the  favor  of  the 
government  of  Egypt;  but  in  process  of  time  his  greatness  and  goodness 
were  forgotten,  and  the  hapless  Israelites  were  cruelly  oppressed  until 
Moses,  who  had  become  of  age,  was  walking  abroad  one  day,  and  seeing  an 
Egyptian  oppressing  one  of  his  people,  drew  near  and  slew  him.  The 
next  day  he  saw  two  of  his  brethren  contending  with  each  other,  and 
when  he  went  to  make  peace,  one  of  them  charged  him  with  having  slain 
the  Egyptian,  which  caused  him  to  be  afraid,  so  that  he  lied  into  the  land 
of  Midian,  and  was  there  until  God  sent  him  to  deliver  his  afflicted 
people. 

To  make  a  practical  use  of  the  text,  we  say  that  but  few,  my  brethren, 
make  a  choice  as  wise  as  that  of  Moses.  For  we  discover  that,  although 
many  profess  to  have  forsaken  the  world  and  suffer  affliction  with  the 
children  of  God,  they  know  but  little  about  his  love.  They  have  the  form 
but  not  the  power  of  godliness;  for  they  will  envy  and  backbite  their 
brethren.  It  was  not  so  with  Moses;  for  we  will  discover,  my  brethren, 
that  he  set  his  whole  heart  upon  God.  His  heart  was  in  heaven  because 
his  treasures  were  there  ;  for  where  the  treasure  is  theie  will  the  heart  be 
also.  Many  desire  to  serve  God,  but  their  hearts  are  upon  the  world,  upon 
its  riches,  or  honors,  or  its  lusts.  I  knew  a  man  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  who, 
if  he  is  alive,  is  about  eighty  years  of  age.  He  was  a  slave,  but  he  was 
also  a  man  of  prayer ;  and  he  used  to  go  with  me  on  a  .Saturday  night  to 
preach  the  Gospel  to  the  slaves  on  the  plantations  in  South  Carolina.  One 
day  he  said :  "  If  I  should  be  a  free  man,  I  will  give  half  my  time  to  God, 
the  other  half  to  my  business."  Some  time  after  his  master  died  and  left 
him  free.  A  short  while  after  this  I  called  on  him  to  go  and  help  me 
preach.  He  excused  himself  by  saying  if  he  left  his  work  the  people  who 
patronized  him  would  complain  and  say  that  he  neglected  his  business. 
About  six  months  after  I  called  again  to  get  his  labors,  but  he  was  so  full 
of  business  he  could  not  go.  I  went  again  the  third  time,  but  he  was 
making  too  much  money  to  leave  his  business.  I  only  tell  this  to  show 
how  few  will  give  up  the  world  for  God  like  Moses.  Nothing,  my  friends, 
could  charm  him  of  an  earthly  character.  He  was  determined  to  glorify 
his  God,  and  so  it  is  with  the  man  whose  heart  is  set  upon  heaven  ;  he  will 
let  nothing  keep  him  from  doing  his  duty.  No  trouble,  no  crosses,  no  per- 
secution can  hinder  him  ;  and  so  it  was  in  the  days  of  Peter,  when  he 
wrote  his  General  Epistle  to  strengthen  his  Hebrew  brethren  under  the 
persecution  of  the  Heathen  Romans.  So,  I  exhort  you,  my  brethren,  to 
let  nothing  keep  you  from  your  duty  to  God,  neither  persecution,  poverty, 
nor  affliction.  Oh,  let  your  hearts  be  in  heaven,  and  God  will  be  with 
you  by  night  and  by  day  ;  but  if  you  grow  weary  and  doubt  by  the  way, 


Bishop  Morn's  Brown. 


266 


he  will  forsake  you  and  let  you  go  to  yourself ;  for  none  get  to  the  kingdom 
or  gel  hia  protection,  toy  brethren,  whose  trust  is  not  in  him.  0,  then,  my 
brethren,  strive  to  live  for  God.  As  the  apostle  saith,  Faith,  hope  and 
charity,  but  the  greatest  of  these  is  charity  have  charity,  then,  or  love 
for  (iod,  and  lie  will  give  yon  grace  to  meet  all  things.  Yes,  my  brethren, 
Where  faith  and  hope  shall  fail,  charity  will  hear  you  through  the  gates  of 
death  in  triumph.  In  t his  unfriendly  world  he  will  he  with  you  as  he  is 
with  our  dear  brother  Richard,  Williams,  who  died  last  week  in  the  tri- 
umphs of  faith,  and  is  now  singing  doxologies  with  the  saints  and  angels 
in  heaven.  Let  his  example  encourage  you,  and  then,  like  Paul,  you  will 
be  able  to  say  :  "  I  have  fought  the  good  light,  J  have  kept  the  faith,  I  have 
finished  my  course  ;  henceforth  there  is  a  crown  laid  up  for  me  which  the 
Righteous  Judge  shall  give  me  in  that  day." 

Now,  my  brethren  and  sisters,  deceive  not  yourselves,  but  love  (iod  as 
did  the  Apostle  Peter,  who  could  say:  "Lord,  thou  knowest  all  things; 
thou  knowest  that  1  love  thee."  1  would  to  God  that  all  of  you  be  stead- 
last  and  immovable,  always  abounding  in  the  works  of  the  Lord.  And  let 
the  young,  like  Moses,  refuse  to  be  among  the  wicked,  to  enjoy  the  pleas- 
ures of  sin  for  a  season,  but  come  and  suffer  affliction  with  the  people  of 
God. 

And  let  me  exhort  you,  my  Christian  friends,  this  morning  to  lay  aside 
every  weight  and  the  sins  which  so  easily  beset  you,  and  run  with  patience 
the  race  which  is  now  set  before  you.  And,  as  Bunyan  observed,  though 
1  fell  among  thieves  and  was  robbed,  yet  I  still  feel  the  jewels  in  my 
bosom.  So  God  will  bless  you  and  be  with  you  when  you  come  to  the 
gates  of  death.  Don't  deceive  yourselves  as  you  may  deceive  others,  but  be 
honest  before  God.  And  you,  my  brethreu  in  the  ministry,  set  a  good 
example  before  the  people.  Oh,  that  God  would  let  these  few  broken 
remarks  rest  upon  your  hearts,  and  bring  us  all  to  heaven,  for  Christ's 
sake.  Amen. 

These  are  Bishop  Morris  Brown's  utterances,  and  it  is  fitting 
that  they  be  followed  by  extracts  from  the  discourse  on  the  life 
and  death  of  the  Bishop,  delivered  in  Ryder's  Grove,  near  Balti- 
more, on  the  16th  of  September,  1849,  by  Rev.  A.  W.  Wayman, 
from  the  text  found  in  Hebrews,  xi.  4,  "By  which  he  obtained 
witness  that  he  was  righteous,  God  testifying  of  his  gifts:  and  by 
it  being  dead  yet  speaketh."  These  extracts  will  serve  as  an 
exhibit  of  our  literature  in  1849.  The  preacher  divided  his  ser- 
mon into  three  heads:  1st.  The  faith  of  the  righteous  man. 
2d.  (<od  testifies  of  two  gifts.    3d.  By  the  testimony  of  God,  he 

being  dead  yet  speaketh.  Upon  the  first  he  said,  in  conclusion  : 
■ 

Such  a  life  as  this,  my  brethren,  cannot  soon  be  forgotten ;  it  may  be 
termed  an  evangelical  faith— such  faith  as  this  Rt.  Eev.  Morris  Brown  had 
from  youth  to  an  old  man. 


266 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Upon  the  third,  after  speaking  of  all  those  things  which  death 
terminates  here  below,  the  preacher  goes  on  to  say: 

In  view  of  this  subject,  we  feel  authorized  to  receive  much  consolation 
in  reference  to  our  deceased  father,  though  dead  he  yet  speaketh  in  a  bet- 
ter world.  We  hope  to  see  him  again  in  that  day  when  the  Lord  shall 
come  to  make  up  his  jewels,  and  will  mingle  in  that  innumerable  company 
which  no  man  can  number,  that  come  up  out  of  great  tribulation,  having 
washed  their  robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb!  The 
faith  of  the  righteous  was  tested  by  the  sickness  and  death  of  our  lamented 
father  and  brother,  lit.  Rev.  Morris  Brown,  of  whose  public  ministry  we 
need  not  speak  only  so  far  as  necessary  to  set  forth  his  Christian  character 
as  a  Bishop  of  the  Church  of  God.  He  was  (as  you  are  all  aware)  a  native 
of  Charleston,  8.  C.  At  an  early  age  he  obtained  faith  in  Christ.  He  was 
said  to  be  a  man  of  piety,  which,  doubtless,  exerted  a  powerful  influence  in 
preserving  iiim  from  the  fashionable  vices  of  the  generation.  He  was 
ordained  a  deacon  and  elder  by  Bishop  Allen,  and  was  subsequently,  in 
1828,  elected  Bishop.  He  then  became  an  associate  with  Bishop  Allen. 
They  suffered  together  till  March  25th,  1831,  when  Bishop  Allen  was  called 
hence  by  the  voice  of  death,  and  left  the  Connection  in  the  care  of  Bishop 
Brown.  From  1831  to  1844  he  stood  in  front  of  the  battle,  and  led  on  the 
sacramental  host.  Through  hot  and  cold,  wet  and  dry,  he  went  to  regulate 
the  militant  churches. 

He  fell  under  the  stroke  of  affliction,  far,  far  in  Canada  West,  and 
resting  on  the  arm  of  his  brother  (N.  C.  W.  C),  was  brought  to  his  resi- 
dence in  Philadelphia.  His  afflictions  were  great,  yet  he  attended  several 
of  the  Conferences,  and  often  were  of  such  a  nature  that  at  times  his  mind 
appeared  to  be  destroyed.  His  speech  toward  the  last  left  him,  yet  he  knew 
every  person  who  called  to  see  him  ;  and  while  singing  a  song  of  praise  he 
would  wave  his  hand  as  a  sign  that  he  had  faith  in  God.  In  this  state  he 
remained  until  the  day  before  the  sitting  of  the  thirty-third  Annual  Con- 
ference of  the  Philadelphia  District.  The  Lord  blessed  him  with  the  return 
of  his  speech;  he  spoke  to  his  wife  and  children,  and  just  about  the  rising 
of  the  sun  on  the  9th  of  May,  1848,  he  bid  his  wife  and  children  farewell, 
and  without  a  groan  he  fell  asleep  in  death.  Though  dead,  yet  he  speaketh 
in  the  regions  of  light  and  glory  of  God,  waiting  the  day  of  his  appointed 
time  till  his  change  shall  come,  when  God  shall  call  him  forth  to  mingle 
forever  with  the  redeemed. 

My  brethren,  he  has  left  us  in  the  wilderness.  As  his  sons  in  the  Gospel, 
let  us  follow  his  example.  Though  dead,  he  speaketh  to-day  from  the 
realms  of  bliss  to  his  brethren,  and  says,  "  Come  on  !  The  victory  will 
be  ours! " 

The  sermon  of  Brother  Wayman  upon  this  occasion  was  fol-, 
lowed  by  the  reading  of  the  touching  lines  of  Rev.  Robert  M. 
Johnson  on  the  death  of  the  same  prelate  which  are  inserted 
here : 


Bishop  Morris  Brown. 


TO  THE  MEMORY  OF  BISHOP  BROWN. 

He  is  gone  from  the  toils  and  cares  of  life, 

From  a  scene  of  confusion,  the  ferment  of  strife; 

On  the  plains  of  bright  glory,  all  verdant  and  green, 

In  concert  with  angels,  Father  Brown  will  he  seen! 

He  is  gone  from  destructive  and  odious  laws, 

The  glare  of  deception  and  prejudicial  wars; 

With  the  choir  of  glory,  who  daily  surround 

The  throne  of  the  Lord,  Father  Brown  will  be  found  ! 

He  has  gone  from  reproach  and  decrepit  old  age, 

Leaving  with  us  his  name  to  record  as  a  sage ; 

'Midst  the  blood-washed  throng  we'll  find  Father  Brown, 

Singing  anthems  of  praise  to  the  great  three  in  One. 

He  is  gone  from  all  hunger,  thirst  and  pain, 

To  regale  in  the  riches  of  Heaven's  domain ! 

Exultingly  happy  in  the  Saviour's  mild  beam, 

And  bathing  his  soul  in  salvation's  pure  stream  ! 

He  has  gone  from  the  field  of  the  Lord  of  Host; 

He  proved  a  true  soldier,  he  died  at  his  post! 

'Midst  the  warriors  of  glory  that  merit  renown, 

All  clothed  in  bright  honors  we'll  see  Father  Brown, 

He  is  gone  from  the  Church,  by  which  he  was  loved, 

To  join  the  Church  triumphant  above  ; 

There  hard  by  the  altar  with  elders  bowed  down, 

In  a  concert  of  praise  is  the  blest  Morris  Brown. 

He  is  gone  from  the  preachers  with  whom  he  convened 

In  annual  successions  to  oppose  wicked  fiends; 

Hence  his  loss  from  our  ranks  we  all  deeply  deplore, 

And  weep  at  the  thought  Father  Brown  is  no  more ! 

He  is  gone  from  companions,  children  and  home, 

Just  leaving  a  group  his  absence  to  mourn, 

Although  they  must  undergo  great  mental  pain, 

This  thought  should  console  them,  their  loss  is  his  gain. 

He  is  gone  to  enjoy  what  heaven  contains, 

Her  enameled  fields  and  elysian  plains; 

There  to  pluck  the  fruits  of  paradise, 

And  better  than  all,  an  eternal  life. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


GENERAL  CONFERENCE  OF  1852. 

Opening  Sermon  by  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne—  Bishop's  Address  by  Bishop  W.  P. 
Quinn — Licensing  Women — The  Question  Discussed — Election  of  Bish- 
ops— Rev.  Willis  Nazrey  and  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  Elected  Bishops— D.  A. 
Payne  Ordained — The  Christian  Herald  Changed  to  Christian  Recorder. 

THE  General  Conference  of  1852  was  opened  in  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  May  3d,  about  10  a.  m. 
It  was  called  to  order  by  the  Rt.  Rev.  William  Paul  Quinn, 
and  M.  M.  Clark,  A.  W.  Wavman  and  Edward  C.  Afrieanus 
were  the  appointed  secretaries.    One  hundred  and  thirty-nine 
persons  were  enrolled  as  members,  but  all  were  not  in  attendance. 

Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  was  called  upon  to  preach  tin;  opening  ser- 
mon, which  is  given  below,  with  but  two  hours  to  prepare  for 
the  occasion  : 

Who  is  sufficient  for  these  things  f — II  Cor.,  ii.  16. 

To  comprehend  the  meaning  of  the  Apostle  in  these  words,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  remember  that  the  cause  of  his  writing  the  first  Epistle  to  Corinth 
was  the  existence  of  certain  evils  in  the  Church  therein  located,  such  as 
the  dissensions  growing  out  of  a  preference  on  the  part  of  some  for  Paul, 
of  others  for  Apollo,  of  a  third  class  for  Cephas,  and  of  a  fourth  class  for 
Christ;  also  the  incestuous  person  who  had  married  his  own  father's  wife, 
and  that  after  reproving  for  the  first,  he  commanded  them  to  cure  this  lat- 
ter evil  by  excommunicating  the  transgressor.  After  rebuking  their  spirit 
of  litigation,  with  every  other  prominent  evil  among  tliem,  he  showeth 
them  the  structure  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  briefly  alludes  to  the  manner 
in  which  this  Church  is  to  be  governed,  and  then  closes  with  a  graphic 
description  of  the  glorious  results  of  the  death  and  resurrection  of  Christ. 
But  in  this,  the  second  Epistle,  he  seems  to  have  written  for  the  restora- 
tion of  the  incestuous  person,  who  had  heartily  repented  of  his  sin,  and 
given  the  proofs  thereof  by  an  utter  abandonment  of  hid  evil  way.  He 
then  compares  the  law  of  Moses  with  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Christ,  showed 
his  faithfulness  and  diligence  in  preaching  it,  his  power  as  an  apostle  to 
punish  obstinate  sinners,  and  concludes  with  a  general  exhortation  and 
prayer  ;  from  all  of  which  it  is  evident  that  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel  and 
Church  government  were  the  themes  that  fill  up  his  vision  when  he  ex- 
claims in  the  language  of  the  text,  "Who  is  sufficient  for  these  things?" 
Do  not  our  hearts  respond  "Who  is  sufficient  for  these  things?"  To  con- 
sider these  things  as  clearly,  and  yet  as  briefly  as  possible,  is  our  duty  on 
this  occasion,  and  may  the  Lord  assist  us  in  the  important  task. 
(  268  ) 


General  Conference  of  L862, 


200 


First,  then,  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel.  What  do  we  understand  by 
tli is  ?  Various  are  the  answers  given.  Some  there  are  who  believe  it  to 
consist  in  loud  declamation  and  vociferous  talking;  sonic  in  whooping, 
stamping  and  beating  the  bible  or  desk  with  their  fists,  and  in  cutting  as 
many  odd  capers  as  a  wild  imagination  can  suggest;  and  some  err  so  griev- 
ously on  this  subject  as  to  think  that  he  who  hallooes  the  loudest  and  speaks 
the  longest  is  the  best  preacher.  Now  all  these  crude  ideas  have  their 
origin  in  our  education,  for  we  believe  just  what  we  have  been  taught. 
But  if -any  man  wishes  to  know  what  is  preaching  the  Gospel,  let  him  not 
ask  of  mere  mortal  man,  but  let  him  find  his  answer  in  the  teachings  of  Him 
who  spake  as  never  man  spake,  and  whose  wisdom  is  without  mixture  of 
error.  Hear  him  in  the  matchless  sermon  on  the  Mount,  teaching  us  to 
find  blessedness  in  poverty  and  meekness,  in  peace  and  righteousness,  in 
mercy  and  purity,  and  to  find  exceeding  great  joy  in  persecution  for  right- 
eousness sake.  See  with  what  divine  skill  he  expounds  the  moral  law,  and 
carries  its  application  beyond  the  outward  and  visible  conduct  into  the 
interior  and  invisible  workings  of  the  human  soul.  Behold  Him  either  in 
private  houses  or  on  the  sea  shore,  or  in  the  temple,  by  parables  of  the 
most  striking  beauty  and  simplicity,  unfolding  the  great  principles  upon 
which  the  moral  government  of  the  universe  is  based,  enlightening  their 
understandings  and  warming  their  hearts  with  the  sunbeams  of  eternal 
truth.  This  is  preaching— preaching  of  the  highest  kind.  We  will  do 
well  to  imitate  it,  in  aid  of  which,  let  us  look  for  a  few  moments  at  the 
work  of-  the  Christian  minister  as  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel ;  and 

First.  It  is  his  business  to  make  man  acquainted  with  his  relations  to 
his  God  as  a  sinner. 

To  accomplish  this  he  must  re-echo  the  thunders  of  Sinai  until  the 
slumbering  rebel  is  started  into  a  sense  of  his  danger,  and  looking  into  his 
own  heart,  he  sees  it  a  cage  of  unclean  birds,  or  a  lair  of  hissing  serpents 
— the  enemy  of  God  by  wicked  works,  and  the  enemy  of  his  own  soul. 
Listening,  he  hears  the  fearful  sentence  :  "  Cursed  is  every  one  that  con- 
tinue th  not  in  everything  written  in  the  book  of  the  law  to  do  it."  Look- 
ing below,  he  sees  hell,  as  it  were,  moving  from  beneath  to  meet  him  at 
his  coming ;  looking  above,  he  beholds  an  indignant  judge  ready  to  pour 
out  the  vials  of  his  wrath  upon  his  guilty  and  defenseless  head.  Now, 
hear  the  cry  of  his  anguished  heart :  "  What  shall  I  do  to  be  saved  ?  "  The 
minister  of  the  Gospel  answers:  "Believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
thou  shalt  be  saved."  Immediately  faith  springs  up  in  the  soul  of  this 
trembling  sinner,  and  looking  to  Calvary  he  sees  there  the  Lamb  of  God 
who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  With  a  bounding  heart  he  ex- 
claims, "  My  Lord  and  my  God,"  and  feels,  pervading  his  whole  being,  "a 
peace  that  passeth  all  understanding,  and  a  joy  which  is  unspeakable  and 
full  of  glory." 

But  the  work  of  the  Gospel  minister  stops  not  here— a  flock  of  rich 
souls  is  committed  to  his  care,  and  it  now  becomes  his  duty  to  train 
them  for  usefulness  and  for  heaven.  "  But  who  is  sufficient  for  these 
things?" 


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History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


"lis  not  a  cause  of  small  import 
The  pastor's  care  demands, 

But  what  might  fill  an  angel's  heart, 
And  fill'd  the  Saviour's  hands." 


Therefore,  with  all  possible  diligence,  he  must  feed  the  babes  with  the 
sincere  milk  of  the  word  until  they  are  able  to  eat  strong  meat;  then  he 
must  feed  them  with  that  until  they  have  attained  the  stature  of  a  man  in 
Christ  Jesus,  and  teach  them  by  all  manner  of  good  works  to  glorify  "  Our 
Father  who  is  in  heaven."  But  this  does  not  terminate  his  work  ;  still  he 
must,  with  untiring  diligence,  arm  every  soldier  of  Christ  with  the  pan- 
oply of  God,  and  then  lead  on  the  sacramental  host  from  truth  to  truth, 
from  grace  to  grace,  from  victory  to  victory,  until  each  of  them  shall  have 
laid  down  his  armor  to  take  up  his  crown  in  heaven.    "But  who  is  suffi- 


cient for  these  things  ?  " 

And  yet,  the  work  of  the  Christian  minister  stops  not  here  ;  for  he  is  to 
discipline  and  govern  the  Church.    This  brings  us  to  consider : 

Second.  A  very  difficult  and  important  part  of  a  minister's  duty. 
Some  of  us  believe  that  to  discipline  the  Church  simply  means  to  try  and 
expel  the  incorrigible.  Is  not  this  a  great  mistake?  Is  it  not  the  very 
last  thing  the  pastor  should  perform  ?  Nay,  dear  brethren,  to  discipline  a 
church  implies  more  than  this.  It  means  to  indoctrinate,  to  instruct,  to 
reprove,  to  admonish,  as  well  as  to  try  and  expel.  You  see,  then,  what  is 
the  pastor's  duty;  he  is  to  make  his  flock  intimately  acquainted  with  the 
doctrines  of  the  Christian  Church,  instruct  them  in  the  principles  of 
Church  government,  reprove  them  for  negligence  and  sin,  admonish  them 
of  their  duties  and  obligations,  and  then  try  and  expel  the  obstinate,  so  as 
to  keep  the  Church  as  pure  as  human  wisdom,  diligence  and  zeal,  under 
divine  guidance,  can  make  it.  "  But  who,"  I  ask,  "is  sufficient  for  these 
things?" 

Sufficiency  is  not  to  be  found  in  man,  but  in  God.  Saith  the  apostle : 
"  Our  sufficiency  is  of  God,  who  also  hath  made  us  able  ministers  of  the 
New  Testament ;  not  of  the  letter,  but  of  the  spirit;  for  the  letter  killeth, 
but  the  spirit  giveth  life."  Yes;  our  sufficiency  is  of  God!  But  how  is 
this  sufficiency  to  be  obtained?  Is  man  a  mere  passive  being  in  the  mat- 
ter; or  does  God  require  some  action  on  his  part?  We  answer,  in  this 
respect  man  is  not  lite  a  seed  placed  in  the  ground,  which  can  be  devel- 
oped by  the  morning  and  evening  dews,  together  with  the  native  warmth 
of  the  earth  and  the  sunbeams.  He  must  use  the  mind  that  God  has 
given  him  ;  he  must  cultivate  this  mind,  and  seek  that  aid  which  is  given 
to  every  one  whom  he  has  called  to  the  work  of  the  ministry. 

First,  then,  let  him  cultivate  his  mind  by  all  the  means  in  his  power. 
With  the  light  of  science,  philosophy  and  literature,  let  him  illumine  his 
understanding,  and  carry  this  culture  and  this  illumination  to  the  highest 
point  possible. 

Secondly,  then,  let  him  seek  the  unction  from  above,  the  baptism  of 
the  Holy  Ghost;  let  him  live  the  life  of  faith  and  prayer— the  life  of  un- 
spotted holiness;  for  such  was  our  Lord  and  Master  Jesus  Christ  the 


General  Conference  of  1852. 


271 


Righteous— his  head  was  all  knowledge,  and  his  heart  all  holiness.  He 
was  as  free  From  ignorance  as  he  was  Eree  from  sin.  God  grant  that  we 
may  all  seek  to  be  like  him  as  much  in  the  one  case  as  in  the  other.  Then 
will  we  be  able  ministers  of  the  New  Testament,  and  be  able  with  the 
illustrious  Paul  to  say,  "Our  sufficiency  is  of  God."  Now,  it  is  for  teach- 
ing  sentiments  like  these  that  I  have  been  slandered,  persecuted  and  hated. 
This  lias  been  the  head  and  front  of  my  offending.  But  brethren,  am  I 
not  right  ?  Is  it  not  proper  that  I  should  seek  the  improvement  of  those 
who  had  not  the  chance  of  an  early  education?  Yes;  I  have  done  it,  and 
still  will  seek  the  improvement  of  all  my  young  brethren,  that  they  may 
be  both  intelligent,  well  educated  and  holy  men.  Like  Moses,  I  can  truly 
say:  "0  that  all  the  Lord's  people  were  prophets."  Yea,  indeed,  I  would 
that  I  was  the  most  ignorant  man  among  you,  possessing  at  the  same  time 
the  amount  of  information  wbich  God  has  given  me,  and  I  deem  it  very 
little  compared  with  that  which  others  enjoy. 

But  to  return  to  the  text,  I  ask  who  is  sufficient  to  preach  the  Gospel  of 
Christ,  and  govern  the  Church  whicb  he  has  purchased  witb  his  own 
blood?  Who  is  sufficient  to  train  this  host  of  the  Lord,  and  lead  it  on 
from  earth  to  heaven?  Who  is  sufficient  to  guide  it  through  this  war 
against  principalities  and  powers,  against  spiritual  wickedness  in  high 
places,  against  all  the  hosts  of  earth  and  hell,  and  place  it  triumphant 
upon  the  shining  plains  of  glory  ?  Who  is  sufficient?  I  answer,  the  man 
who  makes  Christ  the  model  of  his  own  Christian  and  ministerial  charac- 
ter.   "This  man,  and  he  alone,  is  sufficient  for  these  things. 

After  the  preliminary  adoption  of  certain  rules  to  regulate  the 
deliberations  and  the  appointment  of  the  different  committees, 
the  Rt.  Rev.  William  Paul  Quinn  then  delivered  the  Bishop's 
address,  w  hich  of  all  those  hitherto  given  is  the  best,  and  reflects 
credit  alike  upon  his  head  and  his  heart.  It  is  here  presented 
in  full: 

Beloved  Brethren*: — Another  period  of  four  years  has  passed  since,  in 
the  providence  of  God,  we  were  permitted  to  assemble  in  a  similar  capac- 
ity. I  am  happy  to  see  on  this  occasion  so  many  faces  with  which  I  am 
familiar  ;  and  that  Providence  which  has  spared  our  lives  should  be  grate- 
fully adored  by  us,  and  His  presence  supplicated  for  a  continuance  of  his 
mercies  upon  us.  But  while  wre  are  happy  in  the  enjoyment  of  again  be- 
holding the  faces  of  each  other,  we  should  not  be  unmindful  that  death 
has  been  in  our  midst  and  has  called  from  among  us  many  of  our  fellow- 
laborers,  among  whom  was  our  esteemed  father  in  the  Gospel,  the  lit.  Rev. 
Morris  Brown.  Of  the  piety,  labors,  talents  and  exemplary  life  of  this 
good  and  dear  man  I  cannot  fully  speak.  I  trust  all  of  it  is  stamped  upon 
our  memory,  and  I  also  hope  some  able  hand  may  hand  down  to  posterity 
his  name,  with  all  his  usefulness  and  piety.  It  remains  with  us  to  emulate 
his  example,  and  strive  like  him  to  "do  the  work  of  an  evangelist,  and 
make  full  proof  of  our  ministry,"  that  when  our  work,  like  his,  is  done, 


272 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


we  may  meet  him  and  others  of  our  brethren  in  "that  rest  that  remains 
to  the  people  of  God."  Others  have  fallen  whose  loss  we  deplore,  whose 
virtues  we  will  cherish,  and  whose  names  we  will  remember  with  the 
liveliest  emotions. 

It  is  a  source  of  heartfelt  satisfaction  to  look  over  the  labors'  of  our 
brethren  during  the  last  four  years.  Our  Connection  has  wonderfully 
prospered,  and  union  and  harmony  to  a  great  extent  have  prevailed  ;  our 
borders  are  enlarging,  and  from  east,  west,  north  and  south  the  cheering 
tidings  have  come  to  us  of  our  people  flocking  to  the  standard  of  truth. 

Dear  brethren,  met,  as  you  are,  in  the  highest  ecclesiastical  court  known 
to  our  Church,  to  promote  by  your  legislation  the  temporal  and  spiritual 
welfare  of  our  large  and  growing  Connection,  I  humbly  trust  that  in  the 
enactment  of  laws  for  its  regulation  you  will  have  an  eye  to  the  general 
good  of  the  whole,  and  make  only  such  as  are  strictly  necessary,  as 
plain,  concise  and  perfect  as  human  learning  and  intelligence  can  make 
them.  In  order  to  do  this,  you  will  have  to  invoke  the  Giver  of  all  Good, 
and  may  his  blessing  rest  upon  you. 

In  my  address  to  you  four  years  ago  I  had  occasion  to  call  your  atten- 
tion to  several  things  that  I  conceived  to  be  of  great  importance  to  the 
well-being  of  our  Church,  some  of  which  were  acted  upon,  and  some  were 
not.  To  those  which  were  not  acted  upon  at  that  time  I  would  again  invite 
your  special  attention. 

The  first  of  these  is  the  electing  of  another  Bishop.  The  necessity  of 
this  must  be  at  once  plain  to  all  without  my  entering  into  a  minute  detail 
of  all  the  reasons  that  suggest  such  a  desire  upon  my  part;  suffice  it  to 
say,  that  the  interest  of  the  Church  in  all  its  bearings  demand  it. 

The  second  thing  to  which  I  would  call  your  attention  is  the  creating 
of  the  office  of  presiding  elder.  This  is  authorized  by  the  Discipline,  but 
as  yet  has  never  been  carried  out.  The  want  of  them,  in  my  humble 
opinion,  has  been  the  cause  of  a  great  many  mistakes  in  administering  the 
laws,  while  upon  the  other  hand  all  difficulties  would  be  removed  and 
harmony  be  restored  to  such  portions  of  the  Discipline  that  make  provision 
for  the  office.  I  hope,  therefore,  that  during  your  deliberations  this  will  be 
carried  out. 

Our  book  concern  still  continues  in  an  embarrassed  condition  for  the 
want  of  proper  and  adequate  support;  as  also  the  organ  of  the  Church, 
which  was  ordered  to  be  established  at  your  last  session.  As  you  will  be 
put  in  possession  of  the  general  book  steward's  report  during  your  delib- 
erations, I  will  not  speak  definitely  on  the  subject,  hoping,  however,  that 
you  will  see  that  the  whole  concern  is  placed  on  a  more  permanent 
foundation. 

The  Discipline  of  the  Church  will  also  claim  a  share  of  your  delibera- 
tions, as  in  its  present  form  it  seems  hard  to  be  understood,  and  several 
very  important  alterations  might  with  propriety  be  made,  especially  in  that 
part  relating  to  the  ordination  of  elders  and  deacons.  I  would  recommend 
a  thorough  revision  of  all  the  Discipline,  except  the  doctrinal  part,  and  so 
arrange  it  as  to  make  it  at  once  intelligible  and  easy  to  be  understood. 


General  Conference  of  1852. 


273 


I  would  suggest  the  propriety,  also,  of  diminishing  the  delegation  to  the 
General  Conference.  As  it  now  exists,  the  representation  is  far  too  large 
for  our  limited  resources  ;  and  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  business  could  be 
facilitated,  and  our  time  of  sitting  would  be  shortened,  while  at  the  same 
time  it  could  be  so  arranged  that  every  department  of  the  Church  would 
be  as  generally  and  ably  represented  as  now,  providing  the  delegation  was 
lessened.  I  hope  that  you  may  look  upon  this  suggestion  favorably,  as  in 
so  doing  you  will  afford  great  relief  to  the  finances  of  the  Connection,  and 
detract  nothing  from  its  general  wants  or  privileges. 

One  more  subject  to  which  I  would  invite  your  attention,  and  then  I 
shall  have  done.  The  subject  will,  doubtless,  come  before  you  in  some 
form  or  other  during  your  session,  as  it  occupied  some  of  your  attention 
during  the  last  General  Conference.  It  is  the  licensing  of  women  in  the 
Church.  I  have  given  the  subject  some  thought,  but  not  enough  probably 
to  warrant  one  to  give  an  opinion  in  the  case.  All  that  I  ask  is  that  some- 
thing distinct  may  be  done  that  will  be  satisfactory  to  all,  and  the  question 
be  put  to  rest. 

Should  you,  dear  brethren,  give  to  these  different  subjects  that  consid- 
eration and  regard  that  they  seem  to  require  at  your  bands,  your  time  and 
talent  will  be  taxed  to  the  utmost,  and  you  will  stand  greatly  in  need  of 
Divine  help  that  whatever  disposition  is  made  of  them,  it  may  be  done  to 
the  honojr  and  glory  of  God,  that  when  you  go  forth  from  this  place  you 
may  part  with  mutual  good  will,  and  in  the  hope  of  a  better  state  of  things 
growing  out  of  your  united  labors  here.  Let  union  and  concession  actuate 
you,  and  when  the  time  arrives  for  us  to  take  the  parting  hand,  each  one 
of  us  can  go  with  renewed  vigor  and  determination  to  battle  with  increased 
hopes  of  success  in  the  vineyard  of  our  common  Master.  May  his  Holy 
Spirit  guide  us  in  all  our  deliberations  here,  and  when  we  are  all  done  with 
the  duties  of  life,  bring  us  with  peace  into  His  presence  forever. 

William  Paul  Quinn. 

On  Friday  evening,  May  7th,  the  question  of  licensing  women 
to  preach,  alluded  to  in  the  Bishop's  address,  was  discussed  with 
a  great  deal  of  judgment  and  spirit.  Rev.  Thomas  Lawrence 
moved  that  license  should  be  granted  them.  The  motion  was 
put  and  lost  by  a  large  majority. 

The  hour  having  arrived  for  the  election  of  Bishops,  according 
to  a  motion  passed  on  Wednesday,  all  business  was  suspended  for 
that  purpose.  Revs.  Stephen  Smith,  J.  M.  Brown  and  E.  N.  Hall 
were  appointed  judges.  A  hymn  having  been  sung,  and  a  prayer 
offered  to  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  that  he  might  overrule 
the  affairs  of  the  Church,  and  especially  guide  the  brethren  in 
their  choice,  the  polls  were  opened,  and  the  result  was  the  election 
of  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey,  of  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  a  native  of  Virginia, 
18 


274 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


and  D.  A.  Payne,  of  Baltimore,  Mel.,  a  native  of  Charleston, 
S.  C * 

On  the  following  Thursday  they  were  both  consecrated  to  that 
responsible  office  by  Rt.  Rev.  William  P.  Quinn,  assisted  by 
several  elders. 

There  are  powerful  reasons  why  I  should  here  state  that  while 
both  men  were  elected  at  the  same  time,  and  Nazrey  by  nine 
more  votes  than  Payne,  the  latter  was  the  first  upon  whom  ordi- 
nation was  confirmed,  which  established  the  right  of  seniority, 
because  it  is  not  mere  election  that  constitutes  a  Bishop.  If  five 
or  ten  men  were  elected  at  the  self-same  moment,  but  one  could 
be  ordained  at  a  time,  and  the  first  ordained  is  necessarily  the 
senior  of  all  who  may  be  elected  by  the  same  ballot. 

The  third  important  discourse  of  the  Conference  was  given 
upon  the  occasion  of  the  ordination,  by  Rev.  Molson  M.  Clark, 
the  outlines  of  which  we  here  present  to  the  reader : 

This  is  a  true  saying,  if  a  man  desire  the  office  of  a  bishop,  he  desireth  a  good 
vjork. — I  Timothy,  chap,  iii.,  verse  1. 

The  word  bishop  means  overseer  or  superintendent.  It  was  so  used  in 
the  Jewish  Scriptures.  Joseph  was  an  overseer  or  bishop  in  Potiphar's 
house.  The  Levites  were  overseers  or  bishops  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem. 
Solomon  appointed  many  thousand  overseers  or  bishops  to  oversee  the 
work  of  building  the  temple.  The  apostles  and  primitive  ministers  were 
bishops  in  establishing  and  overseeing  the  Gospel  Church,  and  our  Saviour 
is  the  bishop  or  overseer  of  the  souls  of  all  men. 

The  idea  of  a  bishop  or  overseer  is  seen  in  almost  everything  around  us. 
See  the  busy  tribes  of  bees  in  their  industrial  labors— they  have  an  over- 
seer or  superintendent  to  direct  their  work.  See  the  birds  of  passage  , 
when  the  season  to  migrate  to  a  warmer  climate  arrives— one  takes  the 
course  and  pursues  the  passage  in  front  of  the  marshalled  train,  who, 
guided  by  au  instinct  peculiar  to  their  nature,  arrive  with  unerring  cer- 
tainty at  their  destined  haven. 

Our  episcopal  ordination  came  down  to  us  from  apostolic  hands  with 
but  one  small  link  missing  out  of  the  chain.  It  is  known  that  St.  Mark 
was  a  bishop  of  the  church  of  Alexandria  for  a  number  of  years,  and  after 
his  death  there  was  no  regular  succession  to  the  time  of  Dionysius,  a  space 
of  two  hundred  years.  (See  St.  Jerome,  as  quoted  by  Bishop  Hoadley  in 
his  controversy  with  Dr.  Calamy). 

*Four  elders  were  put  up  as  candidates  by  their  friends:  W.  Nazrey, 
R.  Robinson,  A.  R.  Green  and  D.  A.  Payne.  Rev.  W.  Nazrey  was  elected 
a  Bishop  by  sixty-four  votes;  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne  was  elected  by  fifty-five 
votes.  Rev.  R.  Robinson  received  forty-six  votes;  Rev.  A.  R.  Green,  forty 
votes ;  and  Revs.  M.  M,  Clark,  J.  Cornish,  T.  Henry  and  William  Moore 
each  received  one  vote. 


General  Conference  of  1862. 


275 


Here  (two  hundred  years)  is  the  only  link  wanted  to  make  the  episcopal 
chain  entire  from  the  Apostles  down  to  our  day.  About  this  time,  A.I).  250, 
Constantine  the  Great  embraced  the  Christian  faith  and  became  head  of  the 
Church.  He  ordained  Bishops,  and  placed  them,  under  himself,  over  the 
churches  in  the  various  Roman  provinces.  These  Bishops,  in  their  annual 
assemblies,  chose  one  of  their  number  to  preside.  These  presidents  and 
ex-presidents  constituted  the  Archbishops,  and  these  Archbishops  made 
a  Pope.  From  the  days  of  Constantine  to  the  reformation  in  Germany, 
the  episcopal  claim  was  unbroken.  Then,  at  the  reformation,  many  of  the 
regularly  ordained  Bishops  passed  over  into  the  Protestant  Church,  and  the 
succession  came  down  through  the  Church  of  England.  When  John 
Wesley  broke  a  small  link  from  the  English  Church,  he  left  episcopacy 
behind,  and  again  broke  the  episcopal  chain.  Our  Church  being  a  branch 
from  Wesley,  and  seeing  that  the  chain  had  been  broken,  and  desiring  to 
weld  it  or  mend  it  again,  did  so  in  the  ordination  of  Bishop  Allen,  our  first 
Bishop,  for  one  of  those  who  ordained  him  was  himself  ordained  by  Bishop 
White,  a  regularly  constituted  Bishop  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church, 
which  never  lost  the  regular  succession.  Here,  then,  we  have  the  advan- 
tage of  our  white  Methodist  brethren,  who  cannot  boast  of  regular  episcopal 
succession,  it  having  been  broken  by  Wesley,  and  was  not  renewed  till 
Asbury  was  ordained  by  Thomas  Coke,  LL.D.,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore, 
December  27th,  1784.  We,  therefore,  can  trace  back  the  claim  of  episcopal 
succession,  unbroken,  to  the  primitive  Church. 

Our  episcopal  order  commenced  in  the  person  of  Rev.  Richard  Allen, 
thence  down  to  Brown,  Waters,  Quinn,  and  to  Nazrey  and  Payne,  who  are 
this  day  to  be  ordained.  We  hope  to  be  excused  if  we  conclude  our  re- 
marks with  a  few  extracts  from  the  sermon  delivered  by  Thomas  Coke  just 
before  he  ordained  Francis  Asbury,  in  Baltimore.    He  thus  addressed  him  : 

"  1.  A  Bishop  should  possess  humility.  This  is  the  prcservatrix  virtutum 
— the  garb  of  every  other  grace.  As  some  one  beautifully  observes,  other 
graces,  without  humility,  are  like  a  fine  powder  in  the  winds  without  a 
cover.  Let  a  man  be  ever  so  zealous,  ever  so  laborious,  yet,  if  he  wants 
humility,  he  will  be  only  like  Penelope  wTith  her  web,  in  the  ancient  fable, 
undoing  at  one  time  what  she  does  at  another. 

"2.  He  should  have  meekness.  This  is  a  passive  grace  which  flows  out 
in  the  converse  and  the  carriage.  It  is  certain  courtesy.  Grace  is  poured 
into  his  lips,  for  out  of  the  fullness  of  the  Lord  he  receiveth  grace  for  grace. 

"  3.  His  patience.  This  is  the  grace  that '  endures  all  things,'  that  flows 
out  in  sufferings  and  trials,  and  bears  up  the  soul  under  every  difficulty  ; 
sub  pondere  crescit.    The  more  it  is  exercised,  the  stronger  it  grows. 

"  4.  His  impartiality.  This  is  the  rarest  of  all  virtues,  and  yet  one  of 
the  most  important  for  a  ruler  of  the  Church.  There  is  nothing  more  in- 
tolerable to  mankind  than  partiality  in  him  that  governs,  and  it  always 
springs,  in  part,  from  a  meanness  and  a  baseness  of  mind.  It  always  meets 
with  resistance  from  the  governed.  But  the  Christian  Bishop  is  without 
partiality  and  without  hypocrisy. 

5.  His  wisdom.   This  reigns  over  all  his  soul.    He  is  prepared  for  it  by 


276 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


the  God  of  nature,  and  endowed  with  it  by  the  God  of  grace.  He  was 
born  to  govern. 

"  Finally,  Oh  thou  man  of  God,  follow  after  righteousness,  godliness, 
faith,  love,  patience  and  meekness.  Be  thou  an  example  to  the  believers, 
in  word,  in  conversation,  in  charity,  in  spirit,  in  faith,  in  purity.  Keep 
that  which  is  committed  to  thy  trust." 

Oh  thou  who  art  the  Holy  one  of  Israel,  consecrate  these,  thy  servants, 
with  the  fire  of  divine  love  ;  separate  them  for  the  most  glorious  purposes ; 
*  make  them  stars  in  thy  right  hand,  and  fulfill  in  them  and  by  them  all  the 
good  pleasure  of  thy  goodness.  Amen. 

This  discourse  of  Brother  Clark  was  uttered  in  a  power  and 
with  a  melting  unction  that  bathed  the  audience  in  tears. 

During  the  progress  of  our  deliberations,  certain  distinguished 
divines  of  other  denomiaations  visited  us,  and  were  introduced 
to  the  General  Conference.  Among  these  were  Dr.  Pennington, 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  X.  S.;  Dr.  Thompson,  of  the  M. 
E.  Church,  president  of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  University*  and 
Rev.  Charles  Avery,  founder  of  Avery  College,  Allegheny,  Pa. 
The  last  named  gentleman,  having  been  introduced  to  the  Con- 
ference by  Rev.  Stephen  Smith,  rose  and  said  that  lie  felt  grateful 
to  God  for  the  privilege  he  enjoyed  of  speaking  in  the  presence 
of  the  Conference.  He  spoke  of  the  Allegheny  Institute  as  a 
place  of  learning  for  the  colored  youth  of  this  country;  that  a, 
complete  course  of  classical  education  could  be  obtained  there. 
He  said  that  his  hopes  were,  that  in  the  further  progress  of  Ins 
college,  young  men  would  be  educated  for  usefulness  in  the  min- 
istry, in  schools,  and  other  colleges,  etc.,  and  concluded  by  urging 
upon  the  ministers  the  importance  of  using  their  influence 
among  the  people,  by  encouraging  them  to  send  their  children  to 
schools  and  to  college.  He  thought  the  great  aims  of  the  Church 
should  be,  first,  to  educate  the  young  men  for  the  ministry,  and, 
second,  to  educate  the  entire  community  for  usefulness  in  society; 
for  our  only  hope  of  future  elevation  under  Cod  depended  upon 
this. 

To  this,  Brother  D.  A.  Payne  replied,  substantially,  as  follows: 

Venerable  Sir:  As  one  of  the  Bishops  elect  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  I 
have  the  honor  to  reply  to  your  appropriate  remarks  and  excellent  advice, 
and  in  so  doing,  permit  me  to  say  that  we  highly  appreciate  all  that  you 
have  done  and  said,  for  we  are  sensible  of  the  fact  that  if  we  are  ever 
elevated  to  the  rights  and  privileges  of  American  citizens  we  must  become 
an  educated  people. 

When  a  mere  youth,  in  my  native  city,  Charleston,  S.  C,  a  wealthy 


General  Conference  of  L85&. 


277 


planter  from  the  slate  of  North  Carolina,  who  was  passing  through  that 
city  on  his  way  to  New  Orleans  and  the  West  Indies  for  the  improvement 
of  his  health,  which  had  been  violently  attacked  by  consumption,  desired 
to  obtain  an  intelligent,  free  young  man  for  his  body  servant.  Application 
being  made  to  me,  through  the  agency  of  my  guardian,  I  ended  at  the 
Planters1  Hotel  to  see  him.  There  he  endeavored  to  persuade  me  to  travel 
with  him,  and  among  the  inducements  which  he  plied  to  my  mind  was  the 
following  statement  :  Said  he,  "  Daniel,  do  you  know  what  makes  the 
master  and  servant?  Nothing  but  superior  knowledge— nothing  but  one 
man  knowing  more  than  another.  Now,  if  you  will  go  with  me,  the 
knowledge  you  may  acquire  will  be  of  more  value  to  you  than  three  hun- 
dred dollars" — the  amount  of  the  salary  promised  by  him.  Immediately 
1  seized  the  idea.  Instead  of  going  to  travel  as  his  servant,  I  went  and 
chained  my  mind  down  to  the  study  of  science  and  philosophy,  that  I 
might  obtain  that  knowledge  which  makes  the  master. 

Sir,  in  the  language  of  one  of  England's  greatest  philosophers,  "  Knowl- 
edge is  power;"  and  the  history  of  nations,  as  well  as  that  of  human 
progress,  fully  demonstrates  its  truthfulness.  The  most  enlightened  and 
powerful  nations  of  the  earth  were  formerly  among  the  most  ignorant  and 
powerless;  so,  also,  the  most  ignorant  and  imbecile  in  any  given  commun- 
ity may,  by  the  same  means,  become  a  component  part  of  the  most  en- 
lightened and  powerful  in  it. 

Let  every  minister,  therefore,  among  us  educate  himself !  Let  every 
mother  and  father  educate  their  sons  and  daughters.  Then,  as -water  rises 
to  its  natural  level,  so  will  we  rise  to  the  position  destined  by  reason  and 
heaven.  This  is  also  the  advice  of  all  our  real  white  friends  both  Nortli 
and  South.  As  it  regards  the  institution  which  you  have  established,  my 
Reverend  Sir,  we  have  been  there,  and  have  knowledge  enough  of  the  stu- 
dents and  professors  to  know  that  the  latter  are  ripe  scholars  and  Chris- 
tian gentlemen  ;  that  they  educate  the  heads  as  well  as  the  hearts  of  their 
pupils ;  that  they  labor  to  develop  all  their  mental  powers,  and  make  them 
useful  members  of  society.  And  that  this  institution  is  exciting  a  happy 
influence  on  the  surrounding  communities  of  Pittsburg  and  Allegheny  is 
evident  to  every  one  who  will  compare  these  two  communities  at  the 
present  time  with  what  they  wTere  eight  years  ago. 

You,  Reverend  Sir,  are  the  founder  of  this  institution.  The  sculptor 
who  takes  the  rude  marble  out  of  the  quarry  and  carves  it  into  a  beautiful 
human  figure,  immortalizes  himself  by  enshrining  his  genius  in  the  almost 
breathing  statue,  and  to  him  the  praise  of  mankind  is  due.  But  what 
shall  be  said  of  or  given  to  that  man  who  takes  the  rude  intellect  of  human 
kind,  and  develops,  cultivates  and  refines  it?  Sir,  he  does  more  to  com- 
memorate his  name  and  his  greatness  than  monuments  of  brass — because 
he  places  in  heaven  such  monuments  as  will  live  and  shine  when  the 
blazing  stars  shall  be  blotted  out  from  the  map  of  the  skies.  It  now  re- 
mains for  us  to  do  all  that  is  in  our  power,  which  is :  First,  to  tender,  in 
the  name  of  our  hapless  race,  our  unfeigned  thanks  for  your  noble  efforts 
to  educate  it ;  and  secondly,  to  do  our  utmost  to  promote  its  prosperity. 


278 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  committee  on  Revision  of  Discipline  reported  an  amend- 
ment to  the  rnle  regulating  the  composition  of  the  General  Con- 
ference, the  basis  of  representation  and  the  mode  of  election. 
A  counter  report  was  also  introduced  by  Dr.  Bias,  which  led  to 
the  discussion  of  the  relative  merits.  Under  the  greatest  feeling, 
Conference  rejected  both,  and  the  committee  resigned.* 

After  a  thorough  investigation  of  the  condition-  of  the  book 
concern,  which  by  order  of  the  General  Conference  had  been 
removed  to  Philadelphia,  it  was  resolved  to  change  the  name  of 
our  weekly  sheet  and  call  it  the  Christian  Recorder.  Rev.  M.  M. 
Clark  was  elected  editor;  Rev.  William  T.  Catto,  general  book 
steward;  and  Rev.  William  H.  Jones  the  traveling  agent  for  the 
book  concern.  These  were  three  of  the  best  educated  men  in 
the  Connection.  During  the  next  four  years  we  shall  see  how 
the  concern  prospered  in  their  hands.  As  soon  as  possible  after 
the  rise  of  the  General  Conference,  and  under  the  jurisdiction 
and  direction  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference,  the  editor 
issued  the  subjoined 

PROSPECTUS 

Of  the  Christian  Recorder  op  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 

Church. 

Our  Church  organ,  the  Christian  Herald,  was  created  by  the  General 
Conference  in  Philadelphia  in  1848.  It  commenced  its  career  under  very 
inauspicious  circumstances,  with  only  a  few  subscribers ;  but  the  number 
daily  increased  till  sixteen  hundred  were  obtained.  Its  former  editor, 
Rev.  A.  R.  Green,  who  has  now  retired  from  the  editorial  chair,  was  inde- 
fatigable, day  and  night,  in  his  devotion  to  the  interests  of  the  paper,  and 
did,  to  the  extent  of  his  ability,  what  he  could  to  redeem  the  pledge  set 
forth  in  the  prospectus.  Our  gratitude,  with  that  of  the  membership  of 
our  Church  and  of  the  community  as  far  as  the  Herald  circulated,  is  due  to 
him  for  his  untiring  zeal  and  efforts  to  sustain  the  paper  during  the  past 
four  years. 

We,  his  successors,  conscious  of  our  inability  to  fill  his  chair,  and  being 
unaware  to  some  extent  of  the  difficulties  which  surround  it,  shall  enter 
upon  the  responsible  duties  with  much  caution,  and  with  a  firm  determi- 
nation to  do  our  whole  duty,  as  God  shall  point  it  out,  asking  most  fervent- 
ly the  prayers  and  best  wishes  of  the  Bishops,  itinerant  and  local  brethren, 
membership  and  community  at  large. 

The  paper  shall  be  issued  weekly  in  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  at  one  dollar  and 
fifty  cents  per  year,  paid  in  advance. 

*The  most  important  alterations  and  amendments  to  the  Discipline 
may  be  seen  among  the  debates  in  the  General  Conference  of  1852. 


General  Conference  <>f  1852. 


The  objects  to  which  the  paper  shall  be  devoted  are  : 

1.  Religion. 

2.  Morality. 

3.  Science  and  Literature. 

The  paper  shall  not  know  any  social  or  geographical  distinction  among 
our  people  of  East  or  West,  of  North  or  South,  but  shall  be  the  equal 
friend  of  all. 

The  Bishops,  the  itinerant  brethren,  the  locality,  the  laity,  and  all 
friends  shall  have  free  access  to  its  columns  by  their  communications, 
when  not  inconsistent  with  our  position.  Our  reputation  and  honor  are 
here  pledged  to  make  it  a  paper — in  print,  in  size,  in  type  and  in  general 
appearance — that  shall  give  respectability  and  credit  to  us  and  to  the 
Church  and  community.  It  will  be  in  form  so  as  to  be  folded  as  a  book  or 
pamphlet,  that  families  and  individuals  may  have  books  made  of  it  and 
preserved  for  historical  references.  M.  M.  Clark,  Editor. 

The  officers  of  the  Connection  now  stood  as  follows :  Rt.  Rev. 
W.  P.  Quinn,  Rt.  Rev.  W.  Nazrey  and  Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne, 
Bishops;  Rev.  W.  T.  Catto,  general  book  steward;  Rev.  M.  M. 
Clark,  editor;  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones,  general  traveling  book  agent. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 


the  FIRST  DIVISION  INTO  episcopal  districts. 

A  New  Order  of  Things — A  Committee  Appointed  to  Aid  in  the  Manage- 
ment of  the  Book  Concern— New  York  Conference  in  Buffalo — A  Stranger 
as  Foreign  Missionary — Birth  of  a  New  Conference— New  Home  Mission 
Field — First  Division  of  Church  Work  into  Episcopal  Districts — The 
Bishops'  Respective  Fields  of  Labor. 

rT^HE  doings  of  the  Baltimore  churches  for  1852  cannot  be  had, 
and  we  now  proceed  to  those  of  the  Philadelphia  churches, 
that  we  may  find  an  index  to  their  condition.  The  Phila- 
delphia Conference  was  thronged  with  visitors  from  every  Con- 
ference in  the  Connection  hut  Canada.  But  a  new  order  of  things 
was  introduced — not  one  of  these  visitors  was  allowed  to  partici- 
pate in  the  deliberations.  The  reasons  for  this  can  be  easily 
stated.  From  1816  it  had  been  customary  for  brethren  to  visit 
any  Conference  they  pleased: 

(a.)  To  the  neglect  of  their  own  business,  even  for  two,  three 
and  four  weeks  at  a  time 

(b.)  To  the  interference  with  the  particular  business  and  local 
affairs  of  the  district  visited  ; 

(/-.)  And  thereby  not  only  making  an  unnecessary  tax  upon 
the  funds,  but  also  increasing  the  responsibilities  as  well  as  the 
labors  of  the  visited  district,  but 

((h)  Also,  often  distracting  the  business  and  increasing  its 
difficulties. 

• ;  If  A,  B  or  C  desired  to  carry  through  a  favorite  measure, 
and  he  feared  the  majority  was  opposed  to  it,  all  that  he  had  to 
do  was  to  invite  members  from  the  neighboring  district,  and  he 
was  sure  of  success. 

Many  of  the  honest-minded  brethren  saw  these  evils,  and  often 
privately,  sometimes  publicly,  complained  of  them  for  years; 
therefore,  at  the  session  of  the  General  Conference  of  18-52,  they 
passed  a  rule  cutting  of  from  a  voice  and  a  vote  every  one  not  a 
member  of  the  district  in  which  a  particular  Conference  wras 
held.  So  that,  thenceforth  till  1856,  no  visitor  was  allowed  the 
privilege  only  as  a  special  favor. 

The  things  mentioned  were  abuses  of  the  Christian  and  frater- 
(  280  ) 


The  Thirst  Division  Into  Episcopal  Districts. 


281 


nal  privilege  they  had  so  Long  enjoyed — often,  indeed,  to  the 
spiritual  profit  of  the  district  visited,  and  as  often  to  its  detri- 
ment. At  this  meeting  the  venerable  John  Cornish  requested 
and  obtained  a  superannuated  relation  to  the  churches.  Dr. 
James  J.  G.  Bias  was  inducted  into  the  office  of  an  elder,  and 
Brothers  George  McMullen  and  Thomas  Kinnard  were  ordained 
deacons. 

Gone  to  their  everlasting  rest  was  Rev.  J.  L.  Armstrong  and 
[shmael  Berry.  The  former  was  an  itinerant,  the  Latter  a  local 
preacher.  No  obituary  of  either  is  given,  hut  of  the  former  it 
may  he  said  that  he  was  an  active,  intelligent  and  shrewd  man, 
an  excellent  preacher,  frequently  getting  into  ecclesiastical 
troubles,  but  always  getting  out  of  them.  Brother  Shadrack 
Basset  returned  to  the  bosom  of  the  Connection  at  this  ( 'onference. 

Revs.  •).  -I.  (».  Bias,  Stephen  Smith,  Robert  Collins,  J.  P.  B. 
Eddy,  and  the  three  stationed  preachers — Revs.  William  Moore, 
II.  C.  Young  and  G.  W.Johnson,  were  all  elected  to  constitute 
a  committee  to  aid  in  the  management  of  the  book  concern. 
The  western  part  of  Philadelphia  county,  known  as  the  Penn 
District,  Cohocksink,  Kensington  and  White  Marsh,  were  formed 
into  a  mission  at  the  instance  of  Dr.  Bias,  and  at  the  instance  of 
Rev.  S.  Smith,  the  southern  and  eastern  portions  of  the  city  were 
formed  into  another. 

The  following  points  were  decided  by  the  bench  of  Bishops : 

1st.  Bishop  Quinn,  being  in  the  chair,  decided  that  when  a 
man  has  been  impeached  in  an  Annual  Conference,  he  should 
have  no  appointment  to  preach  until  his  difficulties  shall  have 
been  settled.    No  dissent  by  his  colleagues. 

2d.  The  bench  of  Bishops  decided  that  the  preacher  having 
the  charge  of  a  circuit  or  station  is  the  pastor  of  that  charge  until 
his  appointment  to  another  charge  is  announced  in  the  Annual 
Conference  to  which  he  belongs.* 

3d.  The  bench  of  Bishops  decided  that  when  a  preacher  hav- 
ing the  charge  is  applied  to  by  another  church,  whose  pastor  died 
in  the  interval  of  the  Annual  Conference,  for  pastoral  care,  he, 
the  preacher  in  charge  to  whom  such  application  is  made,  is  at 
liberty  to  give  such  pastoral  aid  as  his  other  duties  and  obliga- 
tions permit. 


Of  course  elections  to  office  on  the  part  of  the  General  Conference 
form  an  exception  to  this  rule. 


2*2 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Bishop  Payne  being  in  the  chair,  decided  that  the  rule  of  the 
Discipline,  giving  to  the  minister  or  preacher  in  charge,  who  may 
differ  from  the  majority  of  the  society  or  the  select  number  con- 
cerning the  innocence  or  guilt  of  the  accused  person,  the  privi- 
lege of  referring  the  case  "to  the  ensuing  Quarterly  Conference 
meeting,"  applied  to  all  the  cases  enumerated  from  the  com- 
mencement of  section  2G  to  the  said  rule.  No  dissent  by  his 
colleagues. 

The  New  York  churches  met  in  session  in  the  city  of  Buffalo 
for  the  first  time.  The  business  laid  before  them  was  of  a  very 
exciting  and  perplexing  character.  All  the  brethren  seemed  to 
have  been  Ishmaelites,  for  every  man's  hand  seemed  to  have  been 
raised  against  his  fellow.  No  less  than  sixteen  stood  impeached, 
and  the  charges  with  specifications  were  quite  generally  "malad- 
ministration." 

Brothers  Thomas  Doremus,  John  Elsemore,  William  H.  Ross 
and  J.  W.  Jackson  were  ordained  deacons.  Another  act  of  the 
New  York  Conference  was  that  it  took  in  a  stranger  as  a  member 
of  the  Conference,  and  appointed  him  as  a  missionary  to  the 
West  India  Islands,  putting  the  whole  Haytian  Empire  and 
Jamaica,  the  most  important  of  the  British  possessions,  under 
his  jurisdiction.    The  result  was — failure. 

Gone  to  his  glorious  reward  was  Brother  John  Williams,  of 
Albany  City  Station.  He  was  a  local  preacher  and  a  "  man  of 
most  exemplary  devotedness.  piety  and  Christian  zeal — a  man  of 
God." 

The  First  Congregational  Church  in  the  town  of  Schenectady, 
state  of  New  York,  petitioned  to  become  part  and  parcel  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  be  placed  under  the  jurisdiction  of  this 
Conference.  Their  petition  was  favorably  received,  and  they 
were  formally  admitted  to  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  Con- 
nection. The  following  official  transaction  of  said  church  was 
satisfactorily  received : 

Xnovj  all  men  by  tltese  presents : 

This  is  to  certify  that  the  male  members  of  the  Church  and  congregation 
that  statedly  meet  for  Divine  worship  in  the  house  now  known  as  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  in  the  town  and  county  of  Schenectady,  and 
state  of  New  York,  did  assemble  on  the  evening  of  the  nineteenth  day  of 
April,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-two, 
for  the  purpose  of  organizing  themselves  into  a  body  known  as  the  First 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  the  aforesaid  town,  county  and 


The  First  Division  Into  Episcopal  Dish-ids.  283 


state;  and  also  to  elect  three  trustees  to  act  in  accordance  with  the  Disci- 
pline of  the  aforesaid  church  (see  page  58  of  the  Discipline),  in  accordance 
with  an  act  of  the  legislature  of  the  state  of  New  York,  for  such  purposes 
made  and  provided,  etc.  At  which  meeting  the  Rev.  James  Morris  Wil- 
liams presided  as  judge  of  the  election,  assisted  hy  Rev.  Henry  Hicks  and 
Mr.  John  Jackson.  They  proceeded  to  nominate  candidates  as  follows: 
John  Wendal,  opposed  by  Francis  Lature.  John  Wendal  was  elected  by 
five  votes.  Jacob  Baker,  opposed  by  Tobias  Hartless.  Tobias  Hartless 
was  elected  by  a  majority  of  three  votes. 

The  presiding  judge  then  announced  as  his  decision  that  John  Wendal, 
Tobias  Hartless  and  John  Jackson  were  duly  elected  trustees  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  classed  as  follows,  viz.:  Class 
No.  1,  John  Jackson;  Class  No.  2,  Tobias  Hartless;  Class  No.  3,  John 
Wendal.  Class  No.  1  will  serve  one  year ;  second  class,  two  years ;  and 
the  third  class,  three  years. 

The  most  important  subjects  which  occupied  the  time  of  the 
ministers  of  the  Ohio  churches  this  year  were  those  of  the  book 
concern  and  the  Union  Seminary. 

In  relation  to  the  book  concern  at  Philadelphia,  the  Commit- 
tee on  Ways  and  Means  assumed  an  attitude  hostile  to  their 
action,  declared  the  book  concern  still  within  the  bounds  and 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Ohio  Conference,  and  recommended 
the  appointment  of  an  agent  to  travel  and  raise  means  and  col- 
lects the  debts  which  the  concern  held  against  individuals  in  the 
different  parts  of  the  country ;  and  decided,  also,  to  use  all  proper 
means  to  liquidate  the  debts  held  against  the  Connection.  Their 
alleged  reasons  for  so  doing  were  : 

(a.)  The  declaration  of  the  officers  at  Philadelphia  of  their  unwill- 
ingness and  their  incapability  to  assume  the  debts  of  the  concern. 

(b.)  That  no  principle  would  be  violated,  nor  any  injury  sus- 
tained, if  the  Ohio  Conference,  upon  whose  shoulders  the  burden 
then  rested,  should  act  to  save  its  own  honor,  to  preserve  the  in- 
tegrity of  the  Connection,  and  to  save  one  of  its  members  from 
total  bankruptcy  and  disgrace.  Five  other  resolutions,  solemnly 
protesting  against  the  book  committee  in  the  city  of  Philadel- 
phia, were  adopted. 

Judging  from  the  report  of  the  principal  of  Union  Seminary, 
as  well  as  other  transactions  of  the  Conference,  we  are  led  to  be- 
lieve that  its  condition  was  not  prosperous.  It  seems  that  the 
whole  amount  of  the  salary  which  the  principal  received  during 
the  entire  year  was  but  $85,  and  yet  the  school  was  never  below 
thirty-four  scholars  nor  over  sixty-two  in  number. 


284 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Order-  were  given  to  lay  out  a  portion  of  the  farm  into  lots  of 
half  an  acre  each,  the  whole  number  not  to  exceed  twenty-live, 
these  to  be  leased  "for  a  term  of  thirty  years,  to  be  renewed  in 
valuation  ('very  five  years,  renewable  forever,"  the  price  of  each 
lot  to  be  $5,  subject  to  an  annual  rent  of  S3,  to  be  collected  "on 
the  first  day  of  December  for  the  remaining  four  years  of  the 
first  valuation." 

Now,  when  it  is  remembered,  in  connection  with  all  these 
arrangements,  that  the  farm  was  located  in  an  imaginary  village 
called  Allen ville,  about  fourteen  miles  from  the  nearest  large 
town  or  city,  it  would  seem  that  the  Conference  must  have  been 
dreaming,  or  that  they  had  more  faith  in  the  credulity  of  our 
people  than  the  people  had  in  them.  As  to  the  improvements 
made  there,  a  building  was  nearly  finished  at  an  expense  of 
S72o.  It  was  thirty-six  feet  by  eighteen,  with  the  first  story  nine 
feet,  and  the  second  eight  and  a  half  feet  high  ;  having  two  rooms 
on  the  first  floor  lor  teaching  purposes,  and  four  rooms  with  a 
hall  on  the  second  floor.    Such  was  Union  Seminary  in  1852. 

Brothers  Ridgeway,  I.  M.  Williams  and  G.  Andrews  were  or- 
dained deacons,  and  Rev.  Lewis  Woodson,  a  local  elder  from  the 
True  Weslevan  Connection,  was  admitted  a  member  of  this  Con- 
ference. Two  local  preachers,  Brothers  Allen  Brown  and  Thomas 
D.  Lawrence,  were  among  the  dead  of  the  year,  but  no  account 
of  their  character  and  usefulness  is  given. 

The  doings  of  the  Indiana  churches  for  this  year  may  be  stated 
in  very  few  words.  Rev.  John  A.  Warren,  Horace  B.  Smith, 
Lewis  Johnson  and  Turner  Roberts  were  ordained  elders;  Broth- 
ers I.  W.  Early.  William  Davidson,  John  Curtis,  William  Jack- 
son, L.  W.  Bass.  Willis  Miles,  R.  Bridges  and  William  I.  Davis 
were  ordained  deacons. 

There  were  some  little  disciplinary  measures  used,  but  all  for 
minor  faults. 

One  piece  of  intelligence  was  gratefully  received:  The  officers 
of  the  South  Hanover  College,  in  the  state  of  Indiana,  Jefferson 
county,  addressing  a  letter  to  this  Conference,  to  inform  it  that 
provisions  had  been  made  for  the  education  of  three  colored 
youths  of  that  State,  free  of  charge. 

A  new  Conference  comes  into  being  this  year.  By  order  of 
the  General  Conference  of  1852  the  churches  in  the  New  England 
states  were  severed  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  New  York  An- 
nual Conference,  and  organized  into  a  district  called  the  New 


77/r  First  Division  Into  Episcopal  Districts. 


286 


England  Annual  Conference.  These  churches  were  a  society  in 
Portland,  Maine;  one  in  Boston,  one  in  New  Bedford,  and 
one  in  Worcester,  Mass.;  one  in  Providence,  one  in  Newport,  and 
one  in  Bristol,  in  the  state  of  Rhode  Island;  one  each  in  New 
Haven,  Norwich  and  Bridgeport,  Connecticut. 

After  the  organization  the  brethren  laid  out  two  missions:  the 
New  London  Mission,  embracing  New  London,  Norwich  and 
Plainfield,  Conn.,  with  Worcester,  Mass.;  also  the  Pittsfield  Mis- 
sion, including  Pittsfield,  Lennox,  Barrington,  Lee,  Williams- 
town,  Old  and  New  Stockbridge. 

As  one  entire  generation  had  passed  away,  and  more  than  one- 
third  of  a  century  had  elapsed  from  the  organization  of  the  first 
Conference,  and  the  doings  of  the  first  or  record,  to  the  opening  of 
the  New  England,  it  may  be  interesting  to  judge  from  a  com- 
parison what  progress  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  had  made  in  knowl- 
edge and  ecclesiastical  transactions.  This  new  Conference — the 
firsl  Annual  Conference  of  the  New  England  District — met  in 
Bethel  Church,  Kempton  street,  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  June  10th, 
1862,  lit.  Rev.  Daniel  A.  Payne  presiding.  Rev.  T.  M.  D.  Ward 
was  made  the  secretary  of  the  Conference. 

The  presiding  Bishop  delivered  the  address,  reviewing  briefly, 
after  his  introductory  relating  to  the  nature  of  church  work,  the 
advance,  in  the  following  passages: 

Now,  that  the  Head  of  the  Church  militant  has  enabled  us  to  do  some- 
thing toward  the  accomplishment  of  his  own  will  in  the  great  wrork  of 
salvation,  is  manifest  in  the  progressive  history  of  our  Connection,  let  it 
be  remembered  that  about  thirty-six  years  ago  our  fathers  commenced 
their  operations  as  ministers  of  the  Gospel  in  the  cities  of  Baltimore  and 
Philadelphia  under  circumstances  the  most  adverse  and  trying.  The  prej- 
udices of  the  communit}'  were  against  them,  the  institutions  of  the  country 
were  against  them,  the  laws  of  the  country  were  against  them,  the  literature 
of  the  country  made  them  its  ribaldry.  Poor,  ignorant,  despised,  we  have 
gradually  advanced  from  state  to  state  until  now  our  Connection  unfurls  the 
blood-stained  banners  of  the  Cross  from  the  mountainous  regions  of  Maine 
to  the  lowlands  of  Louisiana,  and  from  the  blue  waves  of  the  Atlantic  to 
the  majestic  billows  of  the  Pacific  ocean.  First,  the  Philadelphia;  second, 
the  Baltimore  ;  third,  the  New  York ;  fourth,  the  Ohio  ;  fifth,  the  Canada; 
sixth,  the  Indiana;  and  now  the  New  England  Conference  will  constitute 
the  seventh  of  these  royal  sisters.    I  call  them  royal,  because  their  Father 

"  Is  the  King  of  saints  and  angels,  too." 

Dim  were  the  twin  stars  that  first  shone  upon  the  states  of  Maryland 
and  Pennsylvania.    They  have  not  only  continued  to  shine,  but  they  have 


286 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


been  increasing  their  luster  and  ascending  the  skies,  adding  to  their  num- 
ber until  seven  now  form  the  glittering  galaxy.  May  they  continue  to 
ascend  the  heights  of  heaven,  and  to  increase  both  in  number  and  radiance 
until  they  shall  have  formed  a  magnificent  constellation,  filling  the  firma- 
ment with  their  glory,  and  causing  the  American  continent  to  bask  in  their 
holy  light. 

The  remainder  of  the  address  consisted  of  sound  advice  to 
"educate  ourselves  by  the  light  of  science  and  philosophy,"  to 
"labor  for  holiness  of  heart,"  to  " be  just  men,"  and  to  "follow 
the  apostolic  example  in  visiting  much,"  with  "  the  holy  design 
of  instructing,  admonishing,  reproving  and  consoling  as  the 
occasion  may  dictate,"  and  lastly,  to  "care  for  the  children," 
closing  with  these  hopeful  words : 

Be  not  discouraged  because  your  number  is  small.  One  hundred  and 
eight  years  ago  a  little  band  of  six  humble,  despised,  persecuted  ministers 
met  in  the  city  of  London  to  do  just  what  you  have  assembled  to  do. 
These  six,  with  Wesley  at  their  head,  jconstituted  the  first  Conference  of 
Methodist  preachers  the  world  ever  saw.  Now  that  little  band  has  multi- 
plied in  Europe  and  America  to  thousands,  and  constituting  a  host  of 
energetic,  earnest  ministers  as  terrible  "as  an  army  with  banners."  Our 
number  now  is  seven,  but  who  can  tell  what  will  be  its  increase  a  century 
hence?  May  not  one  become  a  thousand,  and  two  ten  thousand?  Re- 
member the  race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong ! 

William  J.  Fuller  was  admitted  into  full  connection,  and,  with 
James  D.  S.  Hall,  received  the  orders  of  deacon.  The  preachers 
were  stationed  this  year  as  follows:  New  Bedford,  D.  Dorrell; 
Providence,  James  D.  S.  Hall;  Boston,  T.  M.  D.  Ward;  Bridge- 
port Station,  Geo.  A.  Stanford;  New  Haven,  W.  J.  Fuller;  Port- 
land, T.  C.  Oliver.  Newport  and  Bristol,  with  New  London  and 
Pittsfield  Missions,  were  to  be  supplied.  The  number  in  Society 
was  rive  hundred  and  two. 

Sundry  resolutions  of  importance  were  passed,  censuring  the 
brethren  for  remissness  in  collecting  contingent  money,  and  cut- 
ting off  such  delinquents  from  any  part  in  the  avails  of  that 
fund.  Word  having  been  received  that  if  the  church  at  Port- 
land, Maine,  could  receive  a  man  possessing  proper  qualifications 
the  Society  would  be  "revived  and  established  at  once,"  the  Con- 
ference resolved  to  concentrate  its  energies  for  its  relief  and  per- 
manent establishment.  It  also  resolved  to  carry  out  the  ten- 
cent  system  for  the  creation  of  a  permanent  capital  of  $10,000 
for  the  book  concern,  pledging  themselves  to  sustain  the  Christian 
Recorder, 


The  First  Division  Into  Episcopal  Districts.  287 


The  new  home  mission  field  was  called  for  consideration,  and  the 
Conference  resolved  to  improve  it.  by  creating  a  fund,  as  per  Dis- 
cipline, for  those  who  would  devote  time  to  so  doing j  also  to  Lift 
collections  quarterly.  If  practicable  j  to  preach  a  sermon  quarterly 
upon  the  subject;  to  keep  it  before  the  people  by  frequent  read- 
ing of  that  section  of  the  Discipline  relating  to  it  to  the  congre- 
gation; and  to  recommend  the  forming  of  auxiliary  societies  to 
the  Parent  Society  located  at  Philadelphia. 

The  New  England  Conference  did  not  forget  its  fortunate  geo- 
graphical location  in  its  resolutions  upon  education,  as  evinced 
by  this  portion  of  one : 

While  we  admit  that  New  England  contains  one  of  the  smallest  fractions 
of  our  growing  Church,  nevertheless,  there  is  no  part  of  this  great  republic 
more  attentive  to  the  disciplining  and  improving  of  the  human  mind  than 
those  who  are  styled  the  denizens  of  the  rock-land  states  of  New  England. 

A  set  of  "standing  resolutions  for  the  government  of  commit- 
tees "  was  also  adopted,  and,  with  those  upon  the  usual  topics 
of  intemperance,  slavery  and  Sabbath-schools,  made  up  the  busi- 
ness of  the  Conference  near  the  close  of  the  session,  which  closed 
the  Conference  work  for  the  year. 

This  year,  at  the  General  Conference,  the  Church  work  had 
been  laid  off'  into  three  Episcopal  Districts  for  the  first  time — 
the  first  Bishop's  Council  being  held  at  its  close.  These  three 
districts  wrcre  laid  off,  thus :  First,  embracing  the  Philadelphia 
and  New  England  Conferences  and  their  territory,  to  •  which 
Bishop  D.  A.  Payne  was  assigned;  second,  embracing  the  Balti- 
more and  New  York  Conferences  with  their  territory,  under 
Bishop  Willis  Nazrey;  third,  embracing  the  Indiana  and  Canada 
Conferences  with  their  territory,  under  Bishop  Quinn. 

The  year  1853  opened  with  the  Conference  of  the  Baltimore 
churches.  Not  much  important  business  was  transacted,  if  we 
may  judge  from  the  minutes.  This  was  the  first  Annual  Con- 
ference in  which  Bishop  Nazrey  was  the  sole  presiding  officer, 
and,  as  history  gives  few  of  his  contributions  to  literature,  we 
present  here  his  first  annual  address : 

My  Dear  Brethren  in  the  Gospel: — We  should  certainly  he  thank- 
ful to  God  for  the  privilege  of  assembling  together  in  an  Annual  Confer- 
ence capacity.  There  have  been  some  changes  since  your  last  Annual 
Conference.  I  feel  to  be  indebted  to  the  members  of  this  Annual  Confer- 
ence for  the  position  I  now  occupy — not  that  I  wished  it,  by  no  means ; 
but  for  the  confidence  you  had  in  me.    I  have  visited  many  of  your 


2*8 


Hfatory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


charges  this  year,  and*have  traveled  about  six  thousand  miles,  and  have 
found  many  of  the  churches  in  a  prosperous  condition.  I  have  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  our  people  want  a  visit  from  some  person,  and  it  is  my 
candid  opinion  that  if  we  act  out  the  princij)le,  our  Churches  destined  to 
spread  over  the  land.  God  should,  therefore,  have  the  glory,  and  not 
ourselves. 

We  have  come  together  to  render  an  account  for  our  year's  doings.  It 
should  remind  us  all  of  our  being  brought  before  God  to  render  an  account 
of  oui  stewardship,  when  our  appointment  will  be  fixed  forever.  Let  us 
have  the  great  work  at  heart,  and  act  as  Christian  ministers  should  act. 
While  we  preach  to  others,  let  us  take  heed  to  ourselves,  and  let  our  motto 
be  honesty. 

I  will  deal  with  you  all  as  every  Christian  should  do.  I  shall  have  no 
pet  nor  pocket-pieces.  Let  every  man  examine  the  law  well  before  he  con- 
venes to  caucus;  and  don't  think  when  I  call  a  man  to  order  that  I  have 
something  against  him,  for  it  is  the  duty  of  every  presiding  officer  to  pre- 
serve order.  Don't  look  to  me  for  any  favors  beyond  the  law,  for  my  best 
friends  stand  before  me  as  my  enemies,  and  my  enemies  my  friends. 
Reformation  is  wanted  among  us,  for  we  are  responsible  for  the  example 
we  present  to  the  people.  There  is  no  use  of  our  preaching  to  the  people 
to  be  holy  when  we  are  ourselves  unholy. 

There  is  another  thing  that  will  bring  up  something  to  mind.  We  have 
been  in  the  habit  of  leaving  the  most  important  part  of  the  business  till 
the  last,  and  examine  the  character  before  we  ascertain  whether  the  trav- 
eling preachers  had  done  their  duty  according  to  the  Discipline,  page  131. 
We  shall  defer  the  examination  till  after  the  Conference,  and  ascertain  if 
the  traveling  preachers  have  done  their  duties.  These  are  the  reasons 
when  a  man  is  examined  and  there  is  something  against  him  sufficient  to 
expel  him,  he  goes  with  all  that  he  has  belonging  to  the  Connection.  [A 
case  in  the  New  York  Conference  was  referred  to.]  May  the  Lord  preside 
over  our  deliberations. 

Thus  the  two  newly-made  Bishops  took  charge  of  their  respec- 
tive work. 

Two  local  preachers  fell  from  the  ranks  of  the  ministry  this 
year— Brother  Simon  Brown  and  Brother  Thomas  Williamson. 
The  former  has  no  notice  given  of  his  life  and  works.  Of  the 
latter  the  writer's  recollection  can  be  given.  He  was  a  man  of  a 
dark  chestnut  complexion,  tall  and  erect  in  stature.  He  was  an 
acceptable  preacher — not  profound,  hut  pathetic,  and  maintained 
through  life  an  upright  character.  His  discipline  was  amiable, 
hence  he  had  many  friends  and  admirers. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  Bishops  Payne 
and  Xazrev  presided,  sometimes  jointly,  sometimes  alternately. 
Several  episcopal  decisions  were  required  and  made.  Dr.  J.  J.  G. 
Bias  presented  a  document  condemnatory  of  African  colonization, 


The  First  Division  Into  Episcopal  Districts. 


289 


and  advising  such  of  our  people  as  intend  to  emigrate  to 
td  Canada,  Havti,  or  the  British  West  Indies.    Deacons  Shop- 
hard,  Holcomb,  J.  Holland,  C.  Sawyer  and  C.  Woodyard  wen; 
ordained  elders.    These  items  covered  the  important  business  of 
the  session. 

The  condition  of  the  hook  concern  is  evidenced  by  an  extract 
from  the  report  of  the  general  book  steward  and  editor,  Rev. 
M.  M.  Clark: 

On  presenting  this  report  to  the  Conference,  it  will  not  he  amiss  to  state 
to  the  brethren  that  the  past  year  has  been  one  of  experience  and  trial — 
of  experience  to  us  in  the  proper  management  of  the  finances,  not  previ- 
ously having  a  practical  knowledge  of  book-keeping.  The  most  important 
consideration  in  all  business  regulations  is  a  systematic  arrangement  of  the 
finances.  .  .  .  This  has  been  a  year  of  trial  to  us  also.  The  ministry 
were  to  be  tried  as  to  their  devotion  and  attachment  to  this  great  and  noble 
cause,  the  diffusion  of  books  and  papers  among  the  people,  and  in  the  ex- 
ecution of  the  laws  of  the  General  Conference  in  reference  to  this  depart- 
ment of  our  business  ;  the  raising  of  the  two  cent  money  and  the  ten-cent 
money,  as  recommended  by  the  general  laws  of  the  Church  to  be  raised. 
The  Baltimore  District  did  admirably,  all  things  considered,  in  raising  the 
two-cent  money.  ...  It  now  remains  to  be  seen  what  the  other  dis- 
tricts will  do. 

The  following  report  of  the  finances  and  state  of  the  book  concern 
will  tell  the  sad  story  of  the  great  deficiency  in  many  sections  of  the 
Church  in  point  of  interest  and  energy  among  the  brethren  in  sustaining 
this  cause,  which  in  usefulness  to  the  community  is  next  to  the  preaching 
of  the  word;  and  for  beneficial  ends  to  the  ministry,  if  fully  appreciated 
and  supported,  is  second  to  none. 

In  conclusion,  we  would  suggest  to  the  Conference  the  propriety  of 
urging  the  necessity  of  purchasing  the  press  and  printing  apparatus  be- 
longing to  Mr.  George  Eckert,  who  prints  our  paper,  and  who  will  sell  us 
his  office,  containing  everything  requisite  for  printing  newspapers,  books 
and  every  kind  of  job  printing,  at  a  reasonable  rate.  Perhaps,  at  a  fair 
valuation,  the  property  is  worth  not  less  than  one  thousand  dollars,  which 
he  offers  to  us  for  six  hundred  dollars — two  hundred  dollars  in  cash  when 
the  bargain  shall  be  confirmed,  and  two  hundred  per  year  till  paid.  .  .  . 
A  very  experienced  and  competent  foreman,  Mr.  Wise,  who  is  now  fore- 
man in  the  office,  can  be  had  to  be  foreman  for  us,  and  he  would  be  willing 
and  is  now  anxious  to  learn  colored  boys  the  entire  art  of  printing,  and  by 
that  means  in  a  short  time  put  the  whole  of  the  art  into  our  own  hands. 

The  art  of  making  and  binding  of  books,  which  is  a  separate  trade  and 
distinct  from  the  art  of  printing,  might,  at  no  distant  period,  be  connected 
with  our  printing  establishment,  and  thus  give  employment  to  a  number 
of  both  males  and  females  in  the  respectable  and  useful  arts  of  printing 
19 


290 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


and  binding.  All  of  this  vast  amount  of  usefulness  is  now  within  the 
competency  of  our  Church  to  do  for  our  race,  and  the  bounds  and  utility 
of  such  an  influence  upon  the  future  destiny  and  happiness  of  our  people, 
growing  out  of  an  establishment  of  the  kind,  all  time  and  eternity  would 
only  be  sufficient  to  explain. 

But,  despite  this  appeal,  it  was  years  before  the  publishing 
committee  had  sufficient  enterprise  to  purchase  and  work  a  press 
of  our  own. 

The  annual  address  of  the  presiding  Bishop  gives,  this  year,  a 
more  particular  view  of  the  condition  of  the  Philadelphia 
churches,  as  well  as  a  general  statement  of  the  educational  facil- 
ities enjoyed  by  the  colored  citizens  included  in  the  Conference 
district.  In  it  he  says  that  "  no  less  than  four  houses  of  worship 
have  been  finished  and  dedicated"  within  the  district.  These 
are  described  as  "neat  and  sufficiently  commodious  for  the  pop- 
ulation around  them."  Two  others  are  mentioned  as  nearly 
finished,  and  as  ready,  "  doubtless,  to  be  consecrated  within  three 
months."  But  the  Bishop  makes  a  solemn  "protest  against  this 
mode  of  building,"  in  some  cases,  which  he  describes  as  not 
"constructed  on  the  health-promoting  principle— too  low  in  the 
basements,  or  not  sufficiently  ventilated."  He  claims  that  "it 
has  been  laying  the  foundation  of  disease  and  premature  deatli 
among  both  people  and  preachers  for  the  last  forty  years."  He 
gives  directions  for  construction  based  upon  pure  hygenic  prin- 
ciples, and  says,  that  in  view  of  this  fact — poor  construction — 
"  Who  can  wonder  that  such  gifted  preachers  as  Joseph  Corr  and 
Thomas  Woodson  were  cut  down  in  the  very  midst  of  their 
usefulness,  and  at  a  time  when  the  Church  most  needed  their 
talents  and  piety." 

On  the  subject  of  "education  among  the  rising  generation"  he 
says:  "In  the  towns  and  villages  we  are,  with  few  exceptions, 
but  poorly  provided.  These  exceptions  are  in  favor  of  Morris- 
town,  Fettersville,  West  Chester,  Burlington  and  Bordentown. 
These  schools  are  not  only  provided  with  teachers  of  respectable 
qualifications,  but  are  also  continued  throughout  the  year.  Other 
villages  have  schools  six  months — some  only  three  months."  He 
also  notes  the  evil  of  the  "perpetual  change  of  teachers"  as  "  very 
injurious  to  children."  The  peculiar  advantages  which  the  city 
of  Philadelphia  had  enjoyed  for  more  than  twenty  years  are  also 
noted:  "During  this  period  she  has  had  almost  always  from 
seven  to  fourteen  private  and  three  or  four  public  schools.  At 


The  First  Division  Into  Episcopal  District*. 


291 


present  she  has  no  less  than  seven  public,  sixteen  charity,  and 
seventeen  private  schools,  making  no  less  than  forty  to  a  popu- 
lation of  about  twenty-four  thousand."  In  these  schools  "there 
were  (on  the  1st  of  March,  1853),  in  the  public  and  charity 
schools,  1,914;  in  the  private,  325,  making  a  total  of  2, 319 
scholars.  The  increased  average  attendance  in  the  public  schools 
has  been,  for  the  past  year,  190;  in  the  private,  44,  making  a  total 
increase  of  234."  The  Bishop  calls  upon  the  people,  however,  to 
increase  this  increase,  and  speaks  of  the  private  schools  "kept  by 
Miss  Sarah  Douglass,  Miss  Margaretta  -Forten,  and  Miss  Ada 
Hinton,  as  most  excellent,  as  far  as  they  go."  He  places  the 
high-school  at  the  head  of  all,  with  "Professor  Charles  Reason  as 
the  principal,  assisted  by  Miss  Grace  Mapes,  a  young  lady"  whose 
qualifications  are  said  to  he  of  a  highly  respectable  character." 
Of  Professor  Reason  he  says:  "In  my  humble  judgment,  it  seems 
as  if  he  was  born  for  the  important  office  of  an  educator,  not  only 
on  account  of  his  peculiar  fondness  for  it,  but  also  because  of  his 
extraordinary  aptness."  Respecting  the  "  diffusion  of  knowledge 
among  adults,"  he  draws  attention  to  a  reading-room,  established 
by  the  directors  of  the  high-school,  "containing  upwards  of  a 
thousand  volumes,  and  with  funds  sufficient  to  increase  that 
number  to  ten  or  twenty  thousand."  The  attention  "which  our 
people  are  giving  to  scientific  lectures"  is  another  evidence  of 
progress.  He  sums  up  the  obstacles  in  the  way  of  the  success  of 
the  book  concern  as  "the  ignorance  of  the  mass  of  our  people, 
the  want  of  capital,  and  the  apathy  of  many  in  the  itinerant 
ministry." 

Leaving  the  temporal,  he  gives  a  view  of  the  spiritual  condi- 
tion, noting  the  evils  that  retard  the  progress  of  our  Sunday- 
schools,  and  advising  remedies  in  the  shape  of  a  Bible-class  of 
teachers  formed  for  week-day,  mutual  instruction,  furnishing 
schools  with  books  and  maps,  and  the  pressing  of  exhorters  into  the 
service  of  the  Sunday-school.  Concerning  Church  government, 
he  gives  this  warning:  "To  those  wrho  would  have  the  Church  of 
the  Living  God  reduced  to  a  form  corresponding  to  the  American 
republic,  let  me  say,  stop  and  consider  well  what  you  are  about." 
This  is  the  contrast  presented:  "A  monarchy  oppresses  the 
peasants — the  American  republic  oppresses  and  enslaves  every 
man  who  has  a  drop  of  African  blood  in  his  veins,  and  hunts 
the  panting  fugitive  like  a  wild  beast;"  and  he  draws  from  it 
the  fact  that  "  the  purest  democracy  under  heaven  is  the  most 


292 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


despotic  and  unrelenting  towards  its  victims.  The  form  of  a 
government  is  nothing;  its  just  laws,  impartial  administration 
and  equal  freedom,  everything." 

Here  is  his  advice  respecting  large  churches  like  the  one  in 
which  the  Conference  was  then  assembled.  It  was  reported  as 
having  sixteen  hundred  and  four  communicants:  "Now."  said 
he,  "let  twelve  of  its  principal  men  lead  off  the  six  hundred  and 
four  and  establish  another  church  of  our  Connection  in  the 
western,  southwestern,  or  northwestern  part  of  the  city.  Let 
this  be  done  as  soon  as  a  convenient  place  can  be  procured 
wherein  to  hold  the  meetings."  His  grounds  for  the  advice  are, 
briefly:  "1st.  The  man  is  not  living  who  can  discharge  all  the 
obligations  which  such  a  church  imposes.  2d.  In  a  church  as 
large  as  Bethel  there  is  too  much  latitude  for  evil-doers.  3d.  It 
is  the  surest  method  which  can  be  adopted  to  prevent  another 
schism.  4th.  It  will  do  good  because  it  will  extend  the  bound- 
aries, influence  and  wealth  of  our  Connection.  All  other  denom- 
inations act  upon  this  principle.  There  is  talent  now  in  this 
church  that  cannot  he  brought  into  requisition  just  because  there 
is  no  space  for  its  exercise,  and,  like  a  pent-up  fire,  if  it  is  not 
put  out  it  will  burn  down.  Therefore,  let  Bethel  take  my  ad- 
vice,and  the  men  who  are  now  aspiring  to  be  leaders,  exhorterSj 
preachers,  steward-,  and  trustees,  will  find  ample  room  for  the 
exercise  of  their  gifts  and  graces/' 

The  "education  of  the  ministry"  is  another  topic  in  this 
lengthy  address  where  advice  is  offered,  and  the  reflection  is  added 
"that  sanctified  knowledge  is  a  power  at  once  beneficent,  glorious 
and  tremendous,  because  the  man  in  whom  it  dwells  is  like  an 
angel  of  God  armed  with  thunderbolts,  crushing  the  strongholds 
of  the  empire  of  Satan."  He  mentions  the  fact  that  the  revivals 
of  religion,  while  not  "as  deep  and  extensive  ;is  in  the  years 
1841-2,"  yet  the  Head  of  the  Church  "has  most  kindly  distilled 
upon  us' the  evening  and  morning  dews  of  his  sovereign  mercy." 
With  this  the  Bishop  closes  his  most  exhaustive  address  of  the 
year. 

The  New  York  Annual  Conference  of  1853  located  William 
Harmon  and  John  Elsemore,  at  their  request,  and  ordained 
Thomas  Legg,  Edward  B.  Davis  and  Leonard  Patterson  deacons 
at  the  same  time  that  Rev.  William  H.  Ross  was  ordained  an  elder. 

Rt.  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey,  the  presiding  officer  of  this  district, 
managed  the  husiness  of  Conference  alone  this  year.    As  in  the 


The  Firs/  Division  Into  Episcopal  Districts.  29$ 


Baltimore  ( lonference,  so  also  in  this,  he  introduced  a  change  in  its 
disciplinary  transactions,  which  has  proved  itself  as  beneficial  as 
it  then  appeared  Btrange  and  unreasonable  to  many  who  can  sec 
nothing  good,  right,  or  proper  only  in  what  lias  been  done  by 
the  fathers  and  rendered  sacred  by  a  number  of  years — that  is, 
by  custom.  It  was  an  examination  into  the  financial  affairs  of 
the  Conference  before  the  investigation  of  character.  At  tin;  end 
of  four  years  the  several  Annual  Conferences  found  the  change 
so  useful  and  beneficial  that,  at  the  General  Conference  of  1856, 
tin  y  reduced  it  to  a  rule,  by  placing  the  fourteenth  question  of 
discipline  in  the  stead  of  the  first,  so  as  to  always  enforce  the 
judicious  idea  of  the  Bishop. 

Bishop  Nazrey  also  made  some  decisions  involving  some  cases 
in  dispute  as  to  government,  which  seemed  to  evince  correct  and 
just  judgment.  His  annual  address  to  this  Conference  contains 
nothing  new  or  remarkable.  He  speaks  of  having  visited  all  the 
circuits  and  stations  in  the  district  during  the  past  year,  with 
two  exceptions,  having  traveled  over  six  thousand  miles  since 
the  sitting  of  the  Baltimore  Conference  for  1852,  and  he  finds 
himself  impressed,  by  what  he  has  heard  and  seen,  to  say :  "  It  has 
more  plainly  and  fully  set  before  me  the  duty  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  to  assist  in  sending  the  Gospel  to  the  heathen,  who  are 
out  of  the  limits  of  civilization  and  Christianity.  We  have,  as 
an  Episcopal  Church,  as  much  right  to  look  after  perishing  Africa, 
the  West  India  Islands,  St.  Domingo,  and  others — and  all  those 
who  are  not  christianized — as  any  other  Christian  Church  upon 
the  face  of  the  globe." 

But  in  our  opinion  the  good  Bishop  erred  in  his  views  of  the 
relation  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  the  cause  of  foreign  missions. 
Now,  the  right  to  do  a  thing  involves  the  duty  to  do  it,  but  the 
duty  also  involves  the  ability.  Now,  where  there  is  no  ability  to 
perform  an  act,  there  can  be  no  duty  to  perform  it;  hence,  to 
exercise  a  right  under  such  circumstances  would  place  us  in  a 
very  painful  and  ridiculous  position — even  in  the  position  of  the 
man  who  commenced  to  build,  but  was  not  able  to  finish  his 
house,  and,  therefore,  became  the  laughing-stock  of  his  neighbors. 
The  zeal  of  the  zealous  Bishop  outran  his  knowledge  of  the  cost 
and  difficulties  of  establishing  missions  in  foreign  lands.  Even 
the  planting  of  a  foreign  mission  necessitates  an  outlay  that  our 
Connection  was  not  altogether  prepared  to  meet  in  1889;  still 
less  was  it  in  a  position  to  meet  it  in  1853.    The  Church  Mis- 


294 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sionary  Society  raised  last  year  the  enormous  sum  of  £230,000, 
equal  to  $1,150,000.  In  1884  the  M.  E.  Church  appropriated  for 
her  foreign  missions  8881,898.  The  Wesleyan  Methodist  Mis- 
sionary Society  raised  for  missionary  work,  in  1883,  $(380,905. 

Then,  as  to  the  ideas  of  ecclesiastical  inferiority,  all  men  are 
not  equal  in  every  respect,  in  regard  to  personal  liberty,  to 
enjoy  freedom,  life,  and  to  pursue  happiness,  all  men  are  equal; 
but  as  regards  mental  power,  mental  culture,  the  possession 
of  property,  the  extent  of  influence  resulting  from  wisdom, 
varied  experience,  variety  and  length  of  service,  they  are  not 
equals.* 

It  has  been  seen  that  the  last  newly  made  district  was  cut  off 
from  the  New  York  and  organized  into  the  New  England  Con- 
ference in  1852.  In  1853,  it,  therefore,  held  its  first  annual  meet- 
ing in  New  Bedford,  the  very  place  of  its  organization. 

Rev.  Ransom  Parker  was  admitted  on  trial  as  a  local  preacher. 
Rev.  J.  D.  S.  Hall  was  ordained  an  elder,  and  E.  J.  Adams  dis- 
solved his  connection  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  become  the 
pastor  of  one  of  the  Presbyterian  churches  in  Philadelphia,  Pa. 
The  number  in  Society  was  set  at  five  hundred  and  seventeen, 
of  which  New  Bedford  had  the  largest  share — two  hundred  and 
twenty.    The  total  of  moneys  collected  reached  $640.17. t 

A  review  of  the  field,  especially  those  points  left  destitute  at 
the  last  Conference,  and  the  missionary  work  was  made  in  the 
Bishop's  annual  address.  The  Society  at  Bristol  "had  become  a 
thing  of  the  past,"  though  they  had  a  "neat  little  house  of 
worship  built  through  the  kind  agency  of  Mr.  Spooner,  who 
gave  $200,  and  collected  another  $100  to  pay  the  cost  of  its 
erection. 

In  Newport  were  "found  the  elements  of  a  thriving  society." 
Twenty-four  persons  had  purchased  a  lot,  and  laid  the  founda- 
tion of  a  house  of  worship,  but  the  work  was  poorly  executed, 
the  location  of  this  property  most  unfortunate,  and  the  Bishop's 
advice  was  to  sell  and  purchase  another  site  in  a  more  eligible 

*  What  is  true  of  individual  men  is  also  true  of  individual  organizations 
of  men,  be  they  social,  political,  or  ecclesiastical. 

t Common  sense  tells  us  there  is  no  equality  between  the  A.M.  E. 
Church  and  the  churches  represented  by  these  figures.  An  individual  de- 
nomination, like  an  individual  local  church,  is  like  a  tree.  It  must  attain 
a  certain  age,  and  a  certain  amount  of  productive  power,  before  it  can  pro- 
duce fruit. 


The  First  Division  Tnto  Episcopal  Districts. 


295 


situation.  The  church  was  left  under  the  care  of  a  Local  preacher, 
Rev.  Luke  Waldron,  a  resident  of  Newport. 

Portland,  Maine,  presented  a  "forlorn  condition,"  yet  not  as 
bad  as  Bristol.  By  bad  management  they  had  lost  their  house 
of  worship,  still  they  were  hungering  and  thirsting  for  a  pastor's 
care,  while  in  Bristol  there  was  perfect  indifference.  The  whole 
number  in  Society  was  eight,  who  gladly  made  provisions  for 
the  sup] tort  of  a  preacher  for  one  year. 

The  condition  of  the  New  London  mission,  as  well  as  that  of 
Pittsfield,  led  the  Bishop  to  the  belief  that  unless  a  single  young 
man  of  proper  qualifications  could  be  obtained,  no  one  had  bet- 
ter be  sent  to  cultivate  the  field  until  a  missionary  fund  could  be 
established  to  afford  him  some  aid. 

The  New  England  District  was  then  very  far  behind  the  Balti- 
more and  Philadelphia  Conferences  in  church  building,  but  it 
could  be  attributed  to  the  greater  poverty  of  the  people,  the  small- 
ness  of  numbers,  and  the  short  existence  as  a  church. 

Bishop  Quinn  presided  over  the  Canadian  Conference  of  1853, 
which  assembled  in  Peel,  C.  W.,  July  13th.  He  was  assisted  by 
Bishop  Nazrey  and  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones  was  the  secretary.  Brother 
J.  F.  Copeland  was  received  on  probation  as  an  itinerant  and 
agent  of  the  Industrial  Institute  at  Sandwich.  Rev.  H.  J.  Young, 
from  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  as  an  itinerant  elder,  was  re- 
ceived into  this  district.  Aaron  Mackey  and  Thomas  Pearce 
were  also  admitted  into  its  membership,  while  H.  L.  Dawson  was 
located. 

The  city  of  London  was  formed  into  a  station.  Dansville  and 
Grand  River  were  detached  from  the  Hamilton  Circuit,  and  the 
latter  was  exalted  to  the  rank  of  a  station.  A  new  circuit  was 
formed  called  the  Brantford  Circuit,  which  included  Brantford, 
Simcoe,  Norwich  and  Grand  River.  The  Colchester  Circuit  was 
divided.  Windsor,  Sandwich  and  the  Industrial  Institute  were 
included  in  the  one  called  the  Sandwich  Circuit,  while  Amherst- 
burg  and  Colchester  were  reduced  to  one  called  Colchester. 

Bishop  Quinn  was  at  the  head  of  the  Indiana  Annual  Confer- 
ence of  1853,  Rev.  I.  A.  Warren  and  Mr.  William  Jay  Greenly 
being  secretaries.  Benjamin  Cruden,  Bryant  Smith  and  William 
A.  Dove  wrere  admitted  on  probation.  Basil  L.  Brooks,  John 
Turner,  Salem  Campbell  and  Elisha  Weaver  were  ordained  dea- 
cons, while  William  Jackson,  William  J.  Davis  and  Bryant  Smith 
were  ordained  elders.    An  agent,  E.  Weaver,  was  appointed  to 


296 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 


solicit  funds  for  missionary  purposes  and  itinerant  aid.  The 
relation  of  Asbury  Church  in  Louisville,  Ky.,  to  the  Indiana 
Conference  was  investigated,  but  not  definitely  fixed,  wherefore 
a  committee,  consisting  of  W.  K.  Revels,  Byrd  Parker  and  J.  Cur- 
tis was  appointed  to  adjust  the  matter.  Bishop  Quinn  was  also 
requested  to  meet  this  committee. 

The  church  at  Indianapolis  being  in  such  proximity  to  the 
railroad,  its  trustees  were  authorized  to  sell  it  and  purchase  an- 
other lot  in  a  more  favorable  position  upon  which  to  erect  another 
house  of  worship. 

The  Ohio  Conference  assembled  in  Washington,  Pa.,  Sept.  17th, 
Bishop  Quinn  being  the  only  Bishop  present.  A.  R.  Green  and 
Hiram  Revels  were  the  secretaries.  M,  J.  Wilkerson  was  located. 
George  Andrews,  John  Tibbs  and  Thomas  Handfield  were  ad- 
mitted on  trial.  Jeremiah  Lewis,  Jeremiah  Bowman,  Nelson 
Carter  and  Samuel  T.  Wells  were  ordained  elders;  E.  Epps  and 
John  Tibbs,  deacons. 

On  Thursday  afternoon,  September  22d,  the  Rev.  Lewis  Wood- 
son, a  local  elder  from  an  evangelical  church,  came  forward  and 
took  the  ordination  vows,  and  was  received  into  the  Connection 
as  a  local  elder.  He  was  afterwards  placed  upon  two  committees, 
and  participated  in  the  business  of  the  Conference  from  that  hour 
till  he  left  the  house  for  his  own  home.  Before  he  left  he  ob- 
tained the  certificate  of  his  membership  from  Bishop  Quinn, 
written  by  the  hand  of  Rev.  Hiram  Revels,  one  of  the  secretaries. 
Some  arrangements  were  made  for  the  opening  of  Union  Semi- 
nary upon  the  farm  owned  by  the  Conference,  for  the  support  of 
the  teacher  and  the  boarding  of  the  pupils. 

A  missionary  society  was  formed,  and  the  brethren  also  pledged 
themselves  to  prepare  for  an  examination  in  certain  studies  at 
the  next  session,  that  they  might  be  better  fitted  to  do  the  "  work 
committed  to  their  hands  as  ministers  of  the  everlasting  Gospel." 
Had  the  promise  been  kept,  it  would  have  resulted  in  inestimable 
benefit  to  the  work  and  the  workers. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


SOME  LITERATURE  OF  1852-5:]. 

The  First  Number  of  the  Christian  Recorder -Contents — Extracts — "Ded- 
icatory Lines,"  by  Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne— Dr.  J.  W.  C.  Pennington's 
Contribution— An  Editorial  on  Licensing  Women  to  Preach — Arguments 
Against  It— Lines  by  Rev.T.  M.  D.  Ward— Other  Writers  and  Contributors. 

THE}  prospectus  of  the  re-christened  weekly  paper  of  the 
Church,  the  Christian  Recorder,  has  already  been  given.  The 
first  number  of  this  paper  was  issued  on  Thursday,  July 
1st,  1852.  Its  columns  were  almost  entirely  filled  with  the  do- 
ings and  sayings  of  the  General  Conference.  Two  pieces  of 
poetry,  one  obituary,  and  two  or  three  short  editorials  made  up 
the  rest  of  the  matter.  Some  extracts  from  this  first  number  we 
purpose  to  give  our  readers,  and  possibly  the  most  appropri- 
ate selection  to  first  present  will  be  found  in  the  following  "  Ded- 
icatory Lines  to  the  Recorder,"  by  Rt.  Rev.  I).  A.  Payne : 

Fly,  wing'd  Recorder,  o'er  the  spreading  realms! 

With  a  fair  tablet  and  a  flowing  pen, 

Swift  as  the  lightnings  from  the  rosy  east, 

To  where  the  sun  displays  his  setting  beams, 

And  paints  the  hills  and  clouds  with  glittering  gold  ; 

From  where  the  Northern  bear  laves  his  white  limbs 

In  the  clear  water  of  the  emerald  lakes, 

To  where  the  Sunny  South  spreads  out  her  fields 

Of  canes  and  rice,  of  cotton  and  sweet  flow'rs. 

O!  do  thou 
Be  the  child  of  deep,  of  high  research, 
And  contemplation  sweet;  their  highest  mount 
Ascending,  cast  thine  eyes,  Recorder,  cast 
Thine  eagle  eyes  o'er  all  the  verdant  lands 
And  dark  blue  seas;  then  piercing  all  their  depths, 
Extract  the  treasures  hid  by  God's  own  hand 
In  their  wide  bosoms  ever  since  the  earth 
Began  to  promenade  the  starry  way, 
And  sweep  the  vast  expanse,  and  smile,  and  bathe 
Her  virgin  face  in  morning  dews,  and  drink 
The  rushing  sunlight.    In  golden  caskets 
Place  these  priceless  gifts  for  wondering  man. 

(  297  ) 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


From  the  blue  sky 
Detach  the  glories  of  its  countless  orbs, 
And  fling  them  o'er  his  deathless  soul.  Array 
Him  with  it.    'Tis  a  garment  richly  wove 
In  heaven's  resplendent  loom  by  the  skill'd  hands 
Of  angel  weavers.    Thine  own  pristine  robe, 
Q  man  !  which  deck'd  thy  form  where  majesty 
And  grace  once  brightly  shone,  and  sweetly  kiss'd 
Each  other's  coral  lips.    Recorder,  hear. 
Whate'er  thine  eyes  behold,  note  down — 
The  beautiful  in  nature,  or  the  grand, 
The  curious  or  sublime. 

In  all  the  arts 
Whate'er  is  useful  to  the  world  portray, 
And  show  its  application  just  to  all 
The  ends  of  mortal  life — the  ends  of  God. 
With  chaplets  cull'd  from  the  bright  fields  of  truth 
And  science,  deck  thy  towering  crest,  and  shed 
Their  pure,  their  vivifying  light  into 
The  darken'd  chambers  of  the  human  soul, 
To  give  the  force  of  philosophic  power. 
O  teach  !  and  educate  our  hapless  race  ; 
Into  each  mother's  heart  distil  the  dews 
Of  holy  wisdom— teach  her  how  to  train 
The  infant  mind,  the  rising  youth,  to  deeds 
Of  godlike  greatness.    All  that's  just  and  right 
Instill,  instill !  and  urge  on  every  man 
To  cultivate,  unfold  and  strengthen  all 
The  native  forces  of  his  mind,  and  then 

The  chains 

Of  mental  bondage  shall  decay.    With  might 
The  bounding  spirit  then  shall  snap  each  yoke 
Asunder,  as  old  Samson  did  the  ropes 
That  bound  his  giant  arms.    They  then  shall  all 
Rejoice  in  freedom's  holy  light,  and  ev'ry 
Hill  and  mountain  leap  and  clap  its  hands, 
And  echo  the  sweet  song  of  liberty. 

Seize  the  harp  ! 
And  with  an  angel's  skill,  an  angel's  voice, 
Attune  its  strings  to  notes  of  life  and  joy  ; 
Soothe  the  deep  sorrows  of  the  sadden'd  heart ; 
Wake  ev'ry  joy,  fill  ev'ry  soul  with  bliss; 
0  swell  its  lofty  numbers,  sweet  and  loud, 
Till  the  charm'd  earth  and  list'ning  skies  echo 
Its  melting  strains. 


298 


Som  Literature  of  1852-63. 


299 


The  Church  !  the  Church  of  Christ! 
Lead  on  from  truth  to  truth,  from  grace  to  grace, 
From  one  degree  of  virtue  to  the  last 
That  caps  the  climax  of  the  glorious  height — 
This  sacramental,  this  embattled  hoM 
Lead  on  to  fight  the  battles  of  the  Lord. 
.   'Tisour  Emmanuel  who  does  command  ; 
His  Haming  sword  is  winged  with  death, 
I'pon  his  blood-stained  banner  conquest  sits, 
And  ev'ry  friend  shall  fly — the  Held  is  ours! 

Recorder, 

Heed  my  good  advice.    With  steps  unfalt'ring 
Press  thy  grand  career  unaw'd  by  threat'nings, 
Alike  unbribed  by  gifts  of  artful  men  ; 
But  as  the  sun,  in  his  vast  circle,  moves 
Right  upward — onward  move,  an  orb  replete 
With  light,  and  life,  and  hope  for  each,  for  all. 
The  high  vocation  guard.    0  guard  it  well ! 
The  eye  of  God  is  on  thee,  and  will  watch 
Thy  hidden  thoughts.    Then,  run,  O  run  the  race 
Of  glory*  Fight  the  fi/ht  of  holy  faith  ; 
Ne'er,  ne'er  give  o'er,  nor  lay  thine  armor  down, 
But  to  ascend  on  high  and  take  thy  crown. 

The  following  is  from  the  pen  of  Dr.  J.  W.  C.  Pennington,  who, 
though  not  a  member  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  contributed  this, 
with  others,  to  the  literature  produced  through  the  agency  of  our 
Church.  He  was  a  clergyman  of  the  New  School  Presbyterian, 
and  highly  distinguished  for  his  learning.  He  received  his 
degree  from  one  of  the  most  popular  universities  of  Germany. 
The  subject  is  a  pertinent  one  to-day: 

THE  DESTINY  OF  THE  COLORED  RACE  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

It  was  remarked  by  a  distinguished  statesman  that  the  future  d(&tiny  of 
the  colored  race  will  be  identified  with  the  interests  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
race  in  America.  That  sentiment  will  be  verified.  The  colored  race  will 
never  be  entirely  separated  or  removed  from  this  country  as  a  race,  and 
located  somewhere  else.  History  forbids  the  indulgence  of  the  supposi- 
tion. Nowhere  in  the  history  of  nations,  where  slavery  has  existed,  have 
the  enslaved  been  entirely  separated  or  removed  from  the  land  of  their 
oppression,  except  in  the  solitary  instance  of  the  Hebrew's  from  Egypt, 
and  their  separation  was  the  effect  of  Heaven's  purpose,  or  their  destiny 
to  this  day  would  have  been  identified  to  some  extent  with  the  land 
of  Miriam.  The  Grecian  and  Roman  slaves,  after  their  emancipation,  had 
their  destiny  with  those  nations,  and  rose  to  every  degree  of  distinction  as 


300 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


laborers,  mechanics,  merchants,  agriculturists,  manufacturers,  men  of 
science  and  literature,  men  of  professions— in  religion,  in  medicine,  in  law 
and  the  military  profession.  Tn  all  the  Atlantic  islands  dependent  upon 
Spain,  France  and  England,  where  slavery  has  obtained  and  emancipation 
has  taken  place,  the  emancipated  remain  upon  the  soil,  and  have  and  are  be- 
coming the  owners  of  the  same  to  a  considerable  extent,  and  are  rapidly 
rising  in  the  scale  of  civilization,  like  the  cloudless  sun  appearing  above 
the  horizon,  bending  his  way  to  the  high  point  of  the  zenith,  scattering 
darkness  and  diffusing  warmth  and  light  abroad;  so  they  in  whose  favor 
right  has  triumphed  over  wrong  and  truth  over  error,  are  rising  above  the 
night  of  ignorance  and  slavery  to  the  bright  zenith  of  civil,  social,  political 
and  religious  privileges. 

Such  will  be  the  destiny  of  the  colored  race  in  this  country.  That 
thousands  will  emigrate  while  their  condition  is  being  agitated,  to  escape 
from  the  noise  and  the  strife  of  the  mighty  contest  between  truth  and 
error,  like  those  who  live  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  battle-field,  to 
secure  their  safety  and  avoid  the  sight  of  the  deadly  onslaught,  flee  to 
more  remote  parts,  is  not  denied.  Some  will  take  the  false  advice  of  the 
colonizer,  that  their  condition  can  only  be  improved  materially  by  break- 
ing up  every  tie  and  happy  association  of  their  native  civilized  land,  and 
going  to  a  purely  heathen  and,  to  a  great  extent,  barbarous  country. 

A  few,  attracted  by  the  fact  that  Hayti  has  a  government  conducted  by 
their  colored  brethren,  will  seek  repose  under  the  shade  of  the  mountains 
of  that  eventful  island,  and  be  protected  by  the  laws  of  the  second  colored 
emperor  in  the  history  of  man.  Others,  in  consequence  of  the  known 
humanity  and  benevolence  of  the  British  Isles  toward  the  colored  race, 
will  go  there  to  share  their  hospitality  and  good-will,  and  will  improve  as 
those  islands  are  rapidly  advancing  in  all  the  arts  of  civilized  life. 

Many  hundreds,  amid  a  thousand  opposing  difficulties,  will  cross  our 
inland  seas  to  the  country  reserved  by  a  beneficent  Providence  for  the  safe 
repose  of  abused  humanity,  and  find  comfort  and  succor  under  British 
laws,  while  the  two  opposing  elements,  truth  and  error,  shall  be  contest- 
ing upon  the  field  of  right  for  the  unconditional  freedom  of  the  captive  on 
the  one  side,  and  his  continued  servitude  on  the  other.  Truth,  it  is  pleas- 
ing to  reflect,  being  armed  cap-a-pie  with  omnipotent  energy,  will  doubt- 
less place  her  victorious  flag  upon  the  high  summit  of  conquest,  and  com- 
mand the  admiration  and  shouts  of  an  exulting  world.  While  this  fearful 
contest  shall  be  going  on,  the  refugees  on  British  soil  will  be  advancing  in 
personal  improvement,  in  mental  culture,  in  the  arts  and  sciences,  and  the 
acquisition  of  ownership  in  the  soil— all  of  which  combined  will  secure 
for  them  a  public  respect  and  confidence  such  as  will  make  them  feel  at 
home  and  at  ease.  But  the  millions  will  remain  in  this  country,  and  be 
identified  with  the  history  of  the  white  race,  be  that  history  what  it 
may. 

The  foregoing  essay  was  to  be  continued  in  following  issues  of 
the  paper.  The  editor  had  also  an  editorial  on  "  Licensing  Women 
to  Preach,"  which  we  give: 


Sorru  Literature  of  1862  53. 


301 


Four  years  ago  this  subject  of  licensing  women  to  preach  in  the  church 

came  up  for  consideration  before  the  General  Conference  in  the  form  of  a 
petition  from  the  Daughters  of  Zion.  It  then  went  so  Ear  in  their  favor 
that  they  were  granted  permission  to  preach  in  our  churches,  bul  not  to 
receive  licenses  from  the  Conference.  They  again  petitioned  this  General 
Conference  to  grant  their  license  in  all  respects  as  men  are  licensed,  and  so 
to  graduate  up  to  the  highest  office  in  the  church. 

The  General  Conference  received  their  petition,  and  then  a  motion  was 
made  to  grant  them  their  request.  This  brought  on  a  spirited  discussion, 
in  which  a  number  of  members  took  part,  some  on  one  side,  and  some  on 
the  other.  Finally,  the  vote  was  taken  and  lost,  as  may  be  seen  from  the 
minutes. 

In  every  sphere  of  labor,  physical  and  moral,  Providence  seems  to  have 
appropriated  the  proper  laborers.  In  agricultural  labor  all  the  heavy  work 
is  assigned  to  the  man,  because  he  is  physically  best  constituted  for  it. 
The  same  in  all  mechanical  labor.  In  the  army,  in  the  navy,  in  mercantile 
employment,  and  in  all  the  learned  professions  where  mighty  thought  and 
laborious  investigation  are  needed,  the  man,  strong  in  body  and  mind,  is 
litted  by  nature  to  execute  what  the  weaker  sex  is  incapacitated  for,  both 
physically  and  mentally.  Must  the  Church,  that  needs  the  most  manly 
strength,  the  most  gigantic  minds  to  execute  her  labors,  confide  them  to 
those  whom  nature' has  fitted  for  the  easier  toils  of  life?  Shall  the  labors 
of  a  Paul,  a  Silas,  a  Peter,  a  Luther,  a  Calvin,  a  Wesley,  be  trusted  to  the 
weaker  sex?  Shall  the  mighty  monuments  of  the  translations  and  com- 
mentations of  the  Scriptures,  and  historical  investigations  of  truth,  be 
committed  to  her  who  is  clearly  designed  by  the  Creator  to  labors  less, 
much  less,  in  exercise  and  exertion  of  body  and  mind  ?  Has  this  ever  been 
the  case?  No,  verily.  How  has  God  appropriated  the  labors  and  toils  of 
his  Church  in  all  past  time?  When  the  ground  was  to  be  "tilled,"  and 
"flocks"  to  be  herded,  whom  did  God  employ?  When  the  Ark  was  to  be 
reared  as  a  type  of  spiritual  salvation,  whom  did  God  instruct  to  fashion  it 
after  heaven's  will,  Noah  or  his  wife?  When  the  father  of  the  faithful 
was  to  be  called  and  sent  into  strange  and  foreign  lands  to  meet  the  frowns 
of  kings  and  the  opposition  of  foes,  was  it  the  gentle,  the  easy,  the  confid- 
ing Sarah,  or  was  it  her  lord,  her  head?  When  a  proud,  a  haughty  Pha- 
raoh, was  to  be  instructed  and  counseled  with  the  mighty  plagues  to  be 
wrought,  who  was  the  instrument,  the  well  instructed  Moses,  or  some  one 
of  Israel's  tender  daughters?  When  the  mighty  Oracles  were  to  give  forth 
heaven's  predictions  of  the  coming  Messiah,  or  a  priest  to  typify  the  sacri- 
fice by  bloody  offering,  or  Israel's  throne  to  be  occupied,  in  type  of  the 
Messiah's  everlasting  throne,  who  were  chosen,  the  daughters  or  sons  of 
Levi?  When  the  Messiah's  grand  mission  was  to  be  executed,  was  the 
male  or  female  form  assumed?  When  his  mighty  truths  were  to  be  pro- 
mulgated to  a  listless  world,  who  were  sent  forth  by  heaven's  Son,  the 
tender,  gentle  daughter  of  Israel,  or  her  more  hardy  enduring  brothers?" 

Among  the  productions  of  1853  wo  have  selected  two  poems  by 
Frances,  E.  Watkins  (now  Mrs,  F,  E.  W.  Harper)  : 


Hisl 'or y  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


THE  SOUL. 

Bring  forth  the  balance,  let  the  weight  be  gold  ! 
We'd  know  the  worth  of  a  deathless  soul ; 
Bring  rubies  and  gems  from  every  mine, 
With  the  wealth  of  ocean,  land  and  clime. 

Bring  the  joys  of  the  green,  green  earth, 
Its  playful  smiles  and  careless  mirth  ; 
The  dews  of  youth  and  flushes  of  health — 
Bring  !  Oh,  bring !  the  wide  world's  wealth. 

Bring  the  rich,  rare  pearls  of  thought 
From  the  depths  of  knowledge  brought, 
All  that  human  ken  may  know, 
Searching  earth  and  heaven  o'er. 

Bring  the  fairest  rolls  of  fame — 
Rolls  unwritten  with  a  deed  of  shame; 
Honor's  guerdon,  victory's  crown, 
Robes  of  pride,  wreaths  of  renown. 

We've  brought  the  wealth  of  ev'ry  mine, 
We've  ransacked  ocean,  land  and  clime, 
And  caught  the  joyous  smiles  away, 
From  the  prattling  babe  to  the  sire  gray. 

We'  ve  wrought  the  names  of  the  noble  dead, 
With  those  who  in  their  footsteps  tread, 
Here  are  wreaths  of  pride  and  gems  of  thought, 
From  the  battle-field  and  study  brought. 

Heap  high  the  gems,  pile  up  the  gold, 
For  heavy's  the  weight  of  a  deathless  soul- 
Make  room  for  all  the  wealth  of  earth, 
Its  honors,  joys,  and  careless  mirth. 

Leave  me  a  niche  for  the  rolls  of  fame — 

Oh,  precious,  indeed,  is  a  spotless  name, 

For  the  robes,  the  wreaths,  and  gems  of  thought, 

Let  an  empty  space  in  the  scales  be  sought. 

With  care  we've  adjusted  balance  and  scale, 
Futile  our  efforts  we've  seen  them  fail  ; 
Lighter  than  dust  is  the  wealth  of  earth, 
Weighed  in  the  scales  with  immortal  worth. 

Could  we  drag  the  sun  from  his  golden  car, 

To  lay  in  this  balance  with  ev'ry  star, 

'Twould  darken  the  day  and  obscure  the  night — 

But  the  weight  of  the  balance  would  still  be  light. 


Sonic  Literature  of  1852—53. 


303 


The  second  poem  from  the  same  pen  is  entitled : 

THE  DYING  CHRISTIAN. 

The  light  was  faintly  streaming 

Within  a  darken'd  room, 
Where  a  woman,  faint  and  feeble, 

Was  sinking  to  the  tomb. 

The  silver  cord  was  loosened — 

We  knew  that  she  must  die  - 
We  read  the  mournful  token. 

In  the  dimness  of  her  eye. 

We  read  it  in  the  radiance 

That  lit  her  pallid  cheek, 
And  the  quivering  of  her  feeble  lip, 

Too  faint  with  joys  to  speak. 

And  in  the  thoughts  of  life  and  fire, 
Learn'd  from  God's  encamping  band, 

Her  words  seem'd  like  a  holy  lyre 
Tun'd  in  the  spirit  land. 

We  read  it  in  the  glorious  spark, 

Of  strange,  unearthly  light, 
That  ever  and  anon  would  start 

The  dimness  from  her  sight. 

1  Meet,  O  meet  me  in  the  kingdom,' 

Said  our  lov'd  and  dying  one, 
I  long  to  be  with  Jesus, 

I  am  on  my  journey  home. 

Like  a  child  oppressed  with  slumber, 

She  calmly  sank  to  rest, 
With  her  trust  in  her  Redeemer, 

While  reposing  on  his  breast. 

She  faded  from  our  vision, 

Like  a  thing  of  love  and  light, 
But  we  feel  she  lives  forever, 

A  spirit  pure  and  bright. 

Brother  Edward  Cephas  Africanus  died  in  1853,  a  young  man, 
at  the  age  of  thirty-three  years.  The  Philadelphia  Conference 
spoke  of  him  as  "a  bright  and  shining  light,  a  worthy,  efficient 
and  zealous  minister,  and  a  rare  example  of  true  virtue  and  vital 
piety,"  and  as  one  who  "  towered  high  as  scholar  and  pulpit  orator." 
Rev.  T.  M.  D.  Ward  (now  Bishop  Ward)  then  wrote  these  lines: 


304 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


LINKS  ON  THE  DEATH  OF  REV.  E.  C.  AFRICANUS. 

'Tvvas  good  to  see  him  die— to  note  the  star 

With  beauteous  beaming  sink  in  western  skies, 

To  keep  its  vigils  in  that  better  world. 

'Twas  sweet  to  hear  the  music  of  his  words, 

As  if  some  kindred  ones  in  angel  tones 

Held  converse  with  earth-dwellers,  ere  the  morn 

Smote  on  the  hills  and  tipp'd  the  spires  with  gold — 

Such  was  his  voice,  as  if  the  furtive  winds 

Had  borne  a  wandering  strain  from  seraph  lyres. 

O,  how  triumphant,  when  the  strippling  bared 

His  bosom  to  the  blow,  and  calmly  bade 

The  monster  do  his  worst.    For  he  had  bathed 

His  soul  in  Heaven's  own  dew,  and  deeply  thought 

How  Jesus  went  into  the  vale  alone, 

Shook  its  unearthly  caverns — broke 

The  crown  and  reft  the  sting — 

And  lighted  heavenly  fires  along 

The  mansions  of  the  voiceless  tomb. 

He  is  clothed  in  white — the  starry  crown 
Entwines  his  lofty  brow — an  angel 
Harp  he  strikes,  and  sweeps  the 
Sounding  chords  with  songs  divine. 

One  more  specimen  by  the  same  writer  is  given  : 
THE  HEROIC  CHRISTIAN  WARRIOR. 

My  soul,  the  conflict  grows  severe, 
The  troops  of  hell  are  drawing  near — 
But  the  strong  guard  that  for  the  fight 
Will  guide  thee  to  the  worlds  of  light. 

Gird  on  thy  arms,  march  to  the  field, 
With  glittering  blade  and  burnished  shield  ; 
High  floats  the  spotless  flag  of  truth, 
Upborne  by  hands  that  never  droop. 

The  battle  trump  sounds  long  and  loud, 
Bidding  each  warrior  grasp  his  sword  ; 
Jehovah's  great  Eternal  Son 
Will  lead  the  fearless  army  on. 

Methinks  I  hear  the  glorious  shout — 
The  victory's  won,  the  battle's  fought, 
Emmanuel's  troops  have  won  the  day — 
His  foes  have  fled  in  wild  dismay. 


Some  Literature  of  L852-53. 


305 


No  more  the  clarion  sound  we  bear 
Thrilling  each  heart  with  hope  and  fear; 
The  warrior  wears  the  victor's  palm 
High  in  the  bright  and  better  land. 

There  in  the  realms  of  endless  day, 
Where  stirring  zephyrs  lofty  play, 
We'll  stand  amid  the  spotless  throng 
And  chant  redemption's  gladsome  song. 

Cease  not  the  strife,  my  blood-bought  soul ; 
Press  onward  to  the  blissful  goal — 
Broad  streams  of  everlasting  light 
Will  burst  upon  thy  ravish'd  sight. 

Among  other  writers  who  contributed  to  the  Christian  Recorder, 
and  their  productions,  we  note  the  following:  Miss  Sarah  M. 
Douglas'  "  Scientific  Conversations  between  a  Mother  and  her 
Children;"  Rev.  A.  G.  Beman  on  the  "  Printing  Press;  "  "  Essays," 
by  Mr.  Johnson  Woodlin;  Essays  upon  "Christianity"  and 
"  Women's  Rights,"  by  Miss  Frances  E.  Watkins;  "Essay"  and 
t-  Review  of  Mrs.  Johnson's  Lecture  on  Physiology,"  by  Miss  Mary 
Still ;  Essay  on  "The  Soul,"  by  Mr.  I.  C.  Wear;  "Review  of  Mr. 
Wear's  Essay,"  by  Rev.  Jabez  P.  Campbell;  "Reminiscences  by 
a  Colored  Traveler,"  by  Dr.  Pennington;  poetry,  by  Joseph  W. 
Curtis,  and  various  productions  from  other  writers. 
20 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


AFRICAN  METHODISM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  IN  1854,  1855. 

The  New  England  Conference — Testimony  Against  American  Slavery — 
Prosperous  Condition  of  the  Churches — Temporal  and  Spiritual  Blessings 
—Indiana  Conference — State  of  the  Book  Concern — Christian  Recorder 
Suspended — Two  Ministers  to  be  Appointed  to  Bethel  Church,  Baltimore 
— Bishop  Nazrey's  Practical  Advice — Canadian  Churches— A  Startling 
Movement. 

IN  the  Baltimore  Conference  of  1854  five  young  men  were 
admitted  to  the  itinerant  field — Savage  L.  Hammonds,  Sam- 
uel Walts,  Jacob  Brooks,  William  H.  Hopkins  and  John  H. 
Gaines.  Michael  Sluby  was  admitted  into  full  connection.  Isaac 
Brown,  William  H.  Russell,  William  Cook  and  John  Martin  were 
ordained  deacons,  and  Pompey  Finney  an  elder;  the  hitter's  rec- 
ommendation being  that  "he  was  aged  and  venerable."  This 
year  witnessed  the  (dose  of  the  labors  of  Bishop  Nazrey  as  the 
presiding  officer  of  the  Baltimore  churches. 

The  ministers  of  the  New  England  churches  assembled  in 
Providence,  R.  I.,  this  year,  and  Bishop  Nazrey  assisted  Bishop 
Payne,  who  presided  over  their  deliberations.  Rev.  William  J. 
Fuller  was  secretary.  Two  young  men  were  admitted  on  trial 
into  the  itinerant  ranks — Charles  11.  Pierce  and  William  M. 
Watson.    Jacob  Mitchell  was  received  into  full  connection. 

A  resolution  was  adopted  to  expunge  the  name  of  every  local 
member  from  the  minutes  who  should  absent  himself  from  the 
deliberations  of  the  Conference  for  two  successive  years.  That  aged 
veteran  of  the  Cross,  Rev.  Richard  Robinson,  called  the  attention 
of  the  Conference  to  the  Island  of  Hayti.  He  spoke  of  it  as  a  wide 
field  of  labor,  promising  a  rich  reward  if  a  suitable  young  man 
could  be  obtained  to  send  into  it. 

Bishop  Nazrey  presented  the  claims  of  the  Christian  Recorder. 
He  said: 

If  the  ministers  and  people  would  use  their  influence  in  favor  of  it,  the 
paper  would  be  sustained.  It  was  the  great  organ  of  the  Connection, 
through  which  we  could  hear  from  every  part  of  it.  We  live  too  much 
estranged  from  one  another,  and  will  ever  be  so  until  we  will  support  a 
weekly  paper  that  can  connect  every  portion  of  the  Church  by  weekly 
intelligence.  That  it  may  shed  light  and  truth  among  us,  it  must  be  ably 
(306) 


African  Methodism  in  the.  United  Slides  in  1854,  L855.  307 


supported.  But  this  cannot  be  done  without  sleepless  and  untiring  efforts 
on  the  part  of  the  ministry. 

He  concluded  with  the  following  appeal : 

Let  us,  therefore,  be  aroused  from  our  sleep.  Let  us  take  hold  as  one 
man,  laughing  at  difficulties  and  opposition.  (),  let  us  but  will  it,  and  it 
shall  be  done. 

The  Committee  on  Missions — William  J.  Fuller,  James  L. 
Smith  and  Charles  LI.  Pierce — reported  a  constitution  for  a  mis- 
sionary society,  which  was  adopted.  A  society  was  immediately 
organized  according  to  its  provisions,  and  the  sum  of  $13.00  was 
paid  into  the  treasury.  The  Daughters  of  Conference  from 
Boston  and  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  and  Providence,  R.  I.,  con- 
tributed a  total  of  $114.50  to  the  moneys  of  Conference.  The 
support  which  the  whole  district  gave  its  ministry,  not  including 
table  expenses,  fuel  and  house-rent,  amounted  to  the  sum  of 
*7<>.").«S0.  This  was  not  a  very  mean  sum  when  it  is  remembered 
that  the  Conference  was  only  two  years  old,  and  the  total  num- 
ber of  communicants  only  six  hundred  and  eight. 

The  testimony  which  Conference  bore  against  American  slav- 
ery may  be  seen  in  the  report  of  the  committee  on  that  subject : 

To  the  Bishops  and  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  now  in  session  in 
the  City  of  Providence,  R.  I. : 

We,  your  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of  slavery,  beg 
leave  most  respectfully  to  submit  the  following  report  as  the  result  of  our 
deliberation  : 

Whereas,  The  slave  power  is  bent  on  its  course  of  systematic  oppres- 
sion and  injustice  towards  our  race,  robbing  us  of  our  liberty,  breaking  in 
upon  the  peace  of  our  homes,  carrying  many  of  our  dear  friends  from  a 
land  of  liberty  to  that  of  cruel  and  merciless  bondage,  without  due  process 
of  law,  regardless  of  all  the  groans  and  tears  of  a  Christian  community; 

And  Whereas,  New  slave  territories  have  been  added  to  it,  wresting  a 
large  section  of  country  from  the  domain  of  freedom,  a  section  whose 
freedom  from  slavery  rested  upon  a  historic  fact  in  the  Annals  of  Ameri- 
can Legislation,  but  which  has  been  denied  by  the  slavery  propaganda ; 
therefore, 

Resolved,  That  we,  as  a  body,  do,  in  the  name  of  Almighty  God,  utter  a 
solemn  protest  against  slavery  in  all  conditions,  believing  it  to  be  the  sum 
of  all  villainies — that  is,  take  wrong,  violence  and  injustice ;  take  cruelty, 
hanhheartedness  and  contempt  for  the  rights  and  interests  of  humanity; 
take  fornication,  adultery,  concubinage  of  the  different  races  of  the  human 
family,  in  all  their  acts — among  all,  there  is  none  more  cruel,  more  wicked, 
more  unrighteous,  than  the  cruel  system  o*  slavery.    In  its  system  are 


308 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


theft,  robbery  and  murder.  Add  thern  all  together,  and  the  sum  total 
will  be  slavery. 

Resolved,  That  in  the  enactment  and  passage  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law, 
and  the  more  recent  act,  namely,  the  repealing  of  the  Compromise  of  1820, 
in  the  passage  of  the  Nebraska  Bill — in  these  wicked  and  cruel  acts  are 
burning  coals  of  fire,  which  will  burn  to  the  lowest  hell.  Over  them  all 
hovers  the  dark  angel  of  night,  covering  them  with  the  dark  mantle  of 
wickedness. 

Resolved,  That  we  have  entire  confidence  in  the  promises  of  God  to  de- 
liver the  oppressed  nations  of  earth  from  the  thraldom  of  sin  and  slavery, 
and  to  establish  righteousness  and  truth,  life  and  liberty,  to  all  the  human 
race. 

Resolved,  That  until  our  voices  are  heard  no  more  we  will  wage  a  life-long 
and  sleepless  warfare  with  the  principles  of  slavery  in  all  its  varied  forms. 

Resolved,  That  we  appoint  a  committee  at  this  Conference,  now  in  ses- 
sion, to  wait  on  the  Hon.  William  W.  Hoppin,  now  Governor  of  this  state, 
and  present  to  him  a  copy  of  our  resolutions  on  the  slavery  question,  and 
ask  his  influence  in  behalf  of  the  colored  citizens  of  this  state,  many  of 
whom  are  members  of  our  churches. 

Voted  that  the  committee  consist  of  the  Bishops  of  this  Conference — Rt. 
Rev.  Daniel  A.  Payne  and  Rt.  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey. 

Rev.  W.  H.  Jones,  Chairman,  "] 
W.  M.  Watson,  \  Committee 

Rev.  G.  A.  Stanford,  [  on 

C.  H.  Pierce,  |  Slavery. 

Rev.  James  Hyatt,  J 

Providence,  January  26tJi,  1854. 

The  examination  of  the  affairs  of  the  New  England  churches 
exhibited  a  prosperous  condition. 

The  Ohio  churches  held  their  Annual  Conference  in  the  city 
of  Detroit,  in  the  month  of  August.  Bishop  Quinn  had  presided 
over  the  affairs  committed  to  their  charge  from  1852  to  the  present 
year.  The  acting  secretaries  were  Green  and  Davis.  H.  C.  Gilis- 
pie  was  placed  on  probation  as  an  itinerant,  and  E.  Epps,  J. 
Tibbs  and  S.  T.  Jones  were  received  into  full  connection. 

The  churches  in  general  were  in  good  condition,  as  shown  by 
the  parochial  reports.  Pleasant  Hill  Church  wras  attached  to  the 
Zanesville  Station,  Dresden  to  the  Lancaster  Circuit,  and  Troy 
to  the  Urbana.  The  Meadville  Circuit  was  formed.  The  Toledo 
Mission  was  incorporated  into  the  Sandusky  Mission,  and  Beaver 
was  attached  to  the  Allegheny  Station. 

The  Union  Seminary  reported  thirteen  students  during  the 
past  year,  declared  its  condition  a  favorable  one,  and  the  farm 
Under  good  culture. 


Africam  Methodism  mi  the  United  States  in  L864,  1865.  309 


The  two  who  had  died  during  the  year  were  Rev.  John  P. 
Woodson  and  Rev.  Thomas  Lawrence.  The  former  was  a  man 
of  thirty-four  years,  and  died  at  the  residence  of  Ins  lather  in 
Jackson  county,  Ohio.,  on  the  21st  of  November,  L863?  niter  a 
"severe  illness  of  most  extreme  suffering  for  more  than  a  year, 
which  he  bore  with  Christian  resignation."  Our  efforts  to  collect 
the  tacts  of  Interest  in  his  history  were  useless,  but  a  sketch  of 
Brother  Lawrence  is  herewith  given.  He  died  of  cholera  August 
3d,  1854. 

He  was  a  native  of  South  Carolina,  and  was  born  in  Wilkes- 
borough,  near  Granville  Court-house,  in  the  year  1805.  1 1  is 
parents  were  Samuel  and  Elizabeth  Lawrence.  His  mother  was 
a  piaying  woman.  She  often  took  little  Thomas  to  class-meeting 
from  the  time  he  was  five  years  old;  and,  according  to  his  state- 
ment, he  was  never  out  of  the  class-meeting  afterwards.  On  a 
certain  occasion  he  was  in  company  with  his  two  aunts  on  the 
way  to  a  prayer-meeting  in  the  country.  They  told  him  to  step 
aside  while  they  were  praying  in  a  thicket.  Here  they  remained 
thus  engaged  till  they  became  so  happy  as  to  rejoice  aloud.  This 
circumstance  so  deeply  affected  little  Tommy  that  he  trembled 
with  fear  on  account  of  his  sins,  and  begged  his  aunts  to  pray 
for  him,  while  he  himself  sought  the  Lord  continually  for  the 
period  of  three  weeks.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he  went  to  hear 
the  word  of  God  at  the  afternoon  service.  Under  the  ministra- 
tions his  distress  became  so  great  that  he  ran  out  of  the  sanctuary 
into  a  garden,  where  he  prayed  until  one  of  the  preachers  found 
him  thus  engaged,  took  him  upon  his  knees,  and  instructed  him 
in  the  way  of  life.  At  night  he  returned  to  the  house  of  God, 
where  many  were  praying.  There  also  was  his  grandfather,  then 
an  awakened  sinner,  crying  for  mercy  at  the  hands  of  God. 

The  feelings. of  Tommy  became  very  deep;  he  believed  in 
Christ,  and  rejoiced  in  a  sense  of  his  pardoning  love.  In  this 
faith  he  continued  till  his  nineteenth  year,  when  he  received 
license  to  exhort.  This  license  was  given  him  by  Rev.  Mr.  Young, 
of  the  M.  E.  Church.  He  exercised  the  gift  as  an  exhorter  for 
four  years,  when  he  was  licensed  to  preach  by  Rev.  Wiley  Rey- 
nolds, with  whom  he  traveled  in  the  Chillicothe  Circuit,  in  the 
state  of  Ohio.  This  was  in  1828.  At  Chillicothe  City  he  labored 
for  one  week,  and  he  was  made  to  rejoice  in  the  fact  that  the 
Great  Head  of  the  Church  sealed  his  labors  with  the  conversion 
of  five  persons. 


:-Jin 


ffistory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


On  the  Chillicothe  Circuit  he  labored  throe  years,  one  year 
with  Brother  Reynolds,  one  year  with  Brother  Cousins,  and  one 
by  himself — the  Lord  blessing  his  labors  in  every  direction.  In 
the  third  year  he  experienced  great  difficulties  through  the  oppo- 
sition of  a  zealous  brother  until  his  third  Quarterly  Meeting,  at 
which  time  the  Lord  poured  the  grace  of  his  spirit  so  copiously 
that  many  were  pricked  to  the  heart,  and  twenty  or  thirty  eon- 
verted  to  God,  two  of  whom  became  local  preachers.  In  this 
year  he  built  a  church  in  Chillicothe,  and  organized  a  society  in 
the  Big  Bottom.  Brother  Lawrence  also  organized  one  in  Brown 
County,  one  at  Harden's  Creek,  and  one  at  Pike  ton. 

From  Chillicothe  Circuit  he  was  removed  to  the  Columbus 
Circuit,  where  he  married  his  first  wife.  Miss  Joann  Martin. 
While  riding  this  circuit  he  organized  the  society  at  Springfield, 
now  one  of  the  most  interesting  churches  in  the  state.  He  also 
organized  one  at  Muddy  Creek,  and  one  at  Circle vi lie.  In  those 
times  traveling  was  difficult,  and  the  circuit  so  long  that  it 
often  took  a  man  a  whole  day  to  reach  a  single  appointment. 
On  one  occasion  he  had  to  ride  through  a  winter  storm  so 
severe  that  when  he  reached  his  journey's  end  his  feet  were  so 
frozen  to  the  stirrups  that  a  friend  had  to  knock  them  Loose  with 
a  stick. 

At  the  expiration  of  two  years  he  was  sent  back  to  the  Chilli- 
cothe Circuit.  During  the  first  year  of  the  second  term  he  estab- 
lished the  society  at  Gallipolis.  This  place  had  the  character  of 
stony  ground,  and  the  enemy  did  all  in  his  power  to  render  the 
labor  of  God's  servant  ineffectual  by  blasting  the  good  seeds 
which  were  sown.  But  Christ  was  with  him  and  made  him  con- 
queror; for  the  ringleader  of  the  party  who  opposed  him,  who 
was  also  the  fiddler  of  the  town,  was  led  captive  by  the  Prince 
of  Peace,  and  is  now  an  itinerant  preacher  in  the  west.  Another 
of  these  ringleaders,  who  had  given  a  corn-husking  party  with 
the  intention  of  destroying  the  good  effects  of  Brother  Lawrence's 
labors,  subsequently  became  the  subject  of  redeeming  grace,  and 
years  later  was  an  excellent  man,  a  class-leader,  a  steward,  and  a 
very  pillar  in  the  church  at  Gallipolis. 

The  society  at  Jackson  was  also  established  by  him.  In  this 
church  is  the  family  of  the  Woodsons,  of  whom  the  father  is 
Thomas  Woodson,  and  the  mother,  Jemima,  who  are  remark- 
able for  their  piety,  intelligence,  and  family  government. 

He  organized  a  society  at  Clinton  during  his  labors,  in  which 


African  Methodism  in  tfu  United  States  in  1854,  L855.     Bl J 


Brother  Lee  \v;is  con  veiled,  subsequently  joined  the  ministry, 
and  became  a  traveling  preacher  in  the  Ohio  Conference. 

In  the  year  L834,  while  laboring  on  the  Zanesville  Circuit,  he 
organized  a  society  in  Wheeling,  Va.,  which  afterwards  became 
scattered  to  the  lour  winds,  lie  also  organized  a  society  in 
Rlclntyre;  Imt  this  was  Like  the  hot  deserts  of  Sahara  that  yield 
nothing.  If  he  formed  a  class,  and  placed  it  under  a  leader,  by 
the  time  he  had  gone  halfway  around  his  circuit  this  class  would 
turn  out  the  leader  and  appoint  some  one  else. 

As  a  general  thing,  however,  his  labors  on  the  Zanesville  Cir- 
cuit were  temporally  and  spiritually  blessed.  In  this  year  his 
wile  died  at  Columbus,  where  her  ashes  sleep  in  hope  of  a,  joyful 
resurrection.  While  this  sad  event  was  transpiring  he  was  at 
Mount  Pleasant  holding  his  last  quarterly  meeting.  From 
Zanesville  he  was  sent  to  Hillsboro  Circuit.  There,  in  1835,  he 
organized  a  society  at  Martinsville.  In  1836  he  was  appointed 
to  the  Pittsburg  Station.  His  appointment  embraced  three 
chinches — that  in  Front  street,  that  on  the  hill,  called  Allen 
Chapel,  and  the  one  in  Allegheny  City.  During  his  labors  there, 
Front  Street  Church  was  enlarged  and  reconstructed.  This  ap- 
pointment lasted  but  one'  year.  From  this  he  was  sent  to  Wash- 
ington Circuit.  On  this  circuit  he  organized  four  societies:  one 
at  Connellsville,  one  at  George's  Creek,  one  at  the  Ten  Mile  Run, 
and  one  at  Black  Lick.  From  Washington  Circuit  he  was  re- 
moved to  Cincinnati  Station.  This  year  he  married  MissMelinda 
Hill  in  the  village  of  New  Albany,  Indiana.  His  labors  in  Cin- 
cinnati resulted  in  the  conversion  of  many  souls.  In- 1838  he 
was  re-stationed  in  the  city  of  Pittsburg.  There  his  labors  were 
blessed  in  an  extraordinary  manner,  and  the  flock  under  his 
care  increased  from  two  hundred  and  fifty  to  five  or  six  hundred. 
In  this  appointment  he  remained  two  years.  At  the  end  of  that 
time  he  was  sent  again  to  the  Washington  Circuit  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. During  this  appointment  he  organized  a  society  at  Red 
Stone,  and  built  a  house  of  worship  at  Brownsville.  From  this 
lie  was  sent  to  Columbus  Circuit,  on  which  he  labored  two  years 
more,  during  which  time  he  built  the  neat  house  that  adorned 
that  city  for  many  years,  and  added  many  to  the  sacramental 
host.  From  thence  he  was  moved  back  to  the  Zanesville  Circuit, 
where  he  labored  two  years.  The  first  year  but  few  plants  sprang 
up  from  the  seed  that  was  sown.  Meanwhile  he  formed  a  society 
at  Dresden. 


312 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


During  this  year  he  suffered  from  slander  and  backbiting,  but 
the  slanderer  experienced  a  change  of  heart,  and  confessed  to 
bearing  false  witness  against  him,  consequently  the  second  year 
of  his  labors  did  not  only  witness  the  restoration  of  public  confi- 
dence in  him  as  a  Christian  minister,  but  also  the  revival  of  the 
Avork  of  God  in  his  hands.  At  the  expiration  of  his  service  on 
this  circuit  he  was  sent  the  third  time  to  fill  the  Pittsburg  Station. 
At  this  time  the  state  of  religion  there  was  cold  and  barren. 
Brother  Lawrence  felt  deeply  interested  for  its  change  to  a  better 
condition ;  and  as  many  were  guilty  of  both  secret  and  public  back- 
sliding, upon  one  occasion  he  took  the  text,  "  Will  ye  also  go 
away?"  The  unction  of  the  Holy  Spirit  was  poured  out  upon  the 
sermon,  and  an  interesting  work  followed.  At  the  end  of  one  year 
he  was  removed  to  the  Allegheny  Station.  During  his  first  year's 
labors  his  opposition  was  great,  nevertheless  some  good  was  at- 
tendant upon  them.  The  second  year  was  crowned  with  signal 
blessings.  A  large  number  of  young  men  were  pricked  to  the 
heart,  constrained  to  cry  aloud  for  mercy,  and  finally  rejoiced  in 
a  Saviour's  love.  By  the  end  of  this  term  ninety  souls  were  added 
to  the  flock.  From  Allegheny  he  was  sent  again  to  the  Cincinnati 
Station.  This  was  in  1851.  During  his  labors  here  he  was  com- 
pelled to  direct  his  energies  chiefly  to  raising  money  to  complete 
the  erection  of  a  new  house  of  worship  which  he  found  in  pro- 
gress upon  his  arrival.  In  this  effort  he  was  as  successful  as  the 
state  of  the  money  market  and  the  means  of  the  people  per- 
mitted :  $3,000  was  the  amount  raised. 

In  September,  1853,  Brother  Lawrence  received  his  last  ap- 
pointment— from  the  Cincinnati  to  the  Pittsburg  Station — and 
from  the  hands  of  Bishop  Quinn.  There,  in  his  old  pastorate, 
he  labored  with  his  usual  acceptance  till  he  fell  a  victim  to  the 
cholera,  August  3d,  1854. 

Brother  Lawrence  was  a  man  of  tall  stature,  with  a  slight  in- 
clination to  corpulency;  of  a  Light  complexion,  with  a  round 
face  and  an  elongated  head.  His  manners  were  open  and  pleasing, 
and  he  was  of  a  social,  jovial  disposition.  He  was  illiterate,  but, 
notwithstanding,  he  was  an  instructive  preacher.  His  style  was 
not  brilliant,  but  clear  and  massive.  He  was  not  a  razor,  but  a 
broadaxe.  He  left  a  wife  and  three  children  to  mourn  their  loss, 
together  with  his  beloved  congregation  and  numerous  friends. 

The  Conference  summed  up  the  general  feeling  when,  in  its 
resolutions  of  respect,  the  ministers  best  acquainted  with  his 


African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  1854,  L865.  313 


character  and  usefulness  said,  that  "the  young  men  of  the  west 
have  lost  a  father,  and  the  cause  of  education  an  advocate." 

The  Indiana  Conference  met — the  fifteenth  year  of  its  labors 
in  this  particular  field— in  the  city  of  [ndianapolis.  Bishop 
Quinn,  who  presided  over  the  district,  was  absent  at  the  opening, 
l>ut  subsequently  arrived. 

William  J.  Greenly,  an  intelligent  layman  and  an  excellent 
scribe,  with  Rev.  E.  Mcintosh,  were  secretaries.  Five  brethren 
were  placed  upon  probation  as  itinerants — W.  Trevan,  I).  Rush, 
(J.  Nelson,  E.  Wilkerson  and  J.  M.  ({arrow.  J.  W.  Early,  Wil- 
liam Davidson,  .).  Bass  and  John  Curtis  were  admitted  into  full 
connection.  Seven  were  ordained  elders — John  Turner,  E. 
Weaver,  L.  W.  Bass,  F.  Myers,  C.  Doughty,  Richard  Bridges 
and  W.  Miles.  Three  were  numbered  with  the  dead — John 
Morgan,  Abraham  Burtch  and  Benjamin  Crider.  Of  the  three, 
the  first  had  been  for  sometime  a  member  of  the  Indiana 
Conference,  and  died  October  9,  1853.  "He  was  about  fifty-two 
years  of  age,  and  had  been  a  member  of  the  church  twenty-four 
years,  a  licensed  preacher  twenty  years,  fifteen  a  deacon,  and  four 
an  elder.  During  his  ministry,  in  connection  with  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  he  was  an  active  and  useful  member  of  this  Conference. 
He  was  firm  and  true  to  his  Master's  cause.  The  young  men 
who  were  placed  under  him  had  nothing  of  which  to  complain. 
They  loved  him  as  a  father  and  guide.  He  lived  a  Christian,  a 
faithful  working  man;  he  died  at  his  post  in  full  triumph  of  faith, 
saying  to  many  of  the  flock  committed  to  his  care,  who  stood 
weeping  about  his  bed:  "Brethren,  I  am  the  object  of  your  care; 
I  have  been  sent  among  you  to  serve  you;  be  encouraged,  and 
put  your  trust  in  God;  I  have  examined  myself  and  find  nothing 
wanting." 

Benjamin  Crider  died  August  5th,  1854.  He  "  had  long  been 
a  minister  and  member  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  and  but  recently  a 
minister  of  ours;"  but  it  is  said  of  him  that  he  "labored  for  its 
good."   Rev.  Abraham  Burtch  died  May  5th,  aged  forty-two  years. 

The  Indiana  churches  showed  an  increase  for  the  closing  year 
of  three  hundred  and  one.  Four  thousand  four  hundred  and 
ninety-three  souls  were  in  communion  with  the  Church  of  this 
district. 

Hill's  Chapel,  in  Grant  County,  Ind.,  was  attached  to  the  La- 
fayette Circuit;  Cabin's  Creek  Settlement  to  the  Richmond  Cir- 
cuit; and  Graysville  to  the  Madison  Station.    A  mission  was 


314 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


opened  at  Corvington,  La.,  on  Lake  Ponchartrain,  and  one  was 
also  ordered  to  be  opened  in  St.  Louis. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Home  Missionary  Society  was 
held,  and  its  claims  advocated  by  Rev.  J.  M.  Brown  (now  Bishop 
J.  M.  Brown;  and  Bishop  D.  A.  Payne.  Its  agent.  Rev.  Elisha 
Weaver,  reported  the  sum  of  $444.90.  The  benevolent  societies 
of  the  Roman  Street  Church,  in  New  Orleans,  made  a  donation 
of  $33.00  to  the  Conference. 

It  was  made  the  duty  of  each  circuit  and  stationed  preacher 
to  raise  the  sum  of  two  dollars  to  aid  the  widows  of  deceased 
itinerants.  Thirteen  dollars  were  contributed  on  the  spot  for 
widow  Morgan. 

Action  was  taken  on  various  questions,  but  the  report  upon 
education  showed  the  dawn  of  a  new  era  for  our  people.  These 
extracts  from  that  report  will  indicate  the  source  of  the  new 
light,  and  the  prospects  in  store  for  us: 

And  in  the  great  work  of  educating  the  rising  generation  of  our  people 
in  the  Western  free  states,  we  have  at  present  the  greatest  encouragement 
from  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  which,  at  its  last  ses- 
sion in  Hillsboro,  took  into  consideration  the  many  disadvantages  under 
which  the  colored  people  labor  in  the  above  states,  and  propose  making 
efficient  arrangements  for  the  obviation  of  those  difficulties  which  hitherto 
have  retarded  their  educational  progress,  by  a  unanimous  agreement  on 
their  part  to  give  to  those  of  the  colored  people  who  will  make  an  effort  to 
educate  their  children,  and  those  for  whom  they  act  as  guardians,  their  aid. 
The  said  Conference  proposes  to  co-operate  witli  the  A.  M.  E.  Churcli  in 
this  great  and  laudable  undertaking.  Whereupon,  we  recommend  the 
adoption  of  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions: 

Whereas,  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Churcli,  at  its  last 
session  (at  Hillsboro),  kindly  and  benevolently  expressed  its  sympathy  for 
the  free  colored  people  of  the  Western  free  states,  in  view  of  the  educa- 
tional disadvantages  under  which  they  labor,  and  unanimously  agreed  to 
render  them  aid  in  the  obviation  of  said  disadvantages,  and  also  in  the 
elevation  of  the  colored  people  generally  in  said  free  states  ;  and 

Whereas,  the  said  Conference  proposes  a  co-operation  with  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  this  great  work  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  our  people  in  the  Western  free  states  should  be  grate- 
ful to  said  Conference  for  its  sympathy  and  kind  offer. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  hails  with  hearty  welcome  and 
heartfelt  thanks  the  doings  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  as  above  ex- 
plained. 

Resolved,  3d.  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  each  of  our  traveling  preachers 
to  establish  and  encourage  day  and  Sabbath-schools  in  their  charges,  and 
to  preach  two  or  more  sermons  on  the  subject  of  education  during  the  year. 


African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  1854,  1855.  :>,15 


This  report  was  signed  by  If.  R.  Revels,  J.  M.  Brown,  A.  M. 
Mcintosh,  E.  Weaver  and  L.  W.  Bass  ;is  the  committee.  A  com- 
mittee, consisting  of  Revs.  Willis  R.  Revels,  ^Eneas  Mcintosh 
and  Emmanuel  Wilkerson,  was  then  appointed  t<>  correspond 
with  the  committee  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  and  others  of 
the  same  denomination  in  the  West,  if  need  be.  A  committee, 
consisting  of  the  first  two  of  the  above  committee  and  A.  M. 
Parker,  was  appointed  to  meet  the  Board  of  Managers  and  Trus- 
tees of  the  Union  Seminary,  first,  to  adopt  such  measures  ;is 
would  promote  its  well-being,  and  secondly,  to  negotiate  will) 
the  Board  aforesaid  tor  such  an  interest  in  the  institution  as 
would  enable  the  Indiana  Conference  to  participate  in  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  said  seminary. 

The  Philadelphia  Conference  of  1854  assembled  in  Philadel- 
phia. At  the  opening  of  the  deliberations  Bishop  Payne  was 
the  only  prelate  present.  His  colleagues,  Bishops  Nazrey  and 
Quinn,  subsequently  came  and  aided  him  in  presiding  over  the 
business  of  the  Conference.  Nothing  of  much  historic  impor- 
tance was  transacted.  Joseph  H.  Smith  and  William  Norris  were 
continued  on  trial,  and  Ephraim  Wilson,  Robert  Gibson  and 
William  II.  .Jackson  were  placed  on  trial.  Brothers  Richard  Bur- 
ney  and  Andrew  Till  were  ordained  elders.  Key.  M.  M.  Clark, 
who  was  elected  editor  at  the  last  General  Conference,  and  who 
subsequently,  through  the  resignation  of  Rev.  W.  T.  Catto, 
became  general  book  steward,  resigned  his  twofold  office.  Before 
this  act  he  made  his  annual  report,  which  exhibited  the  true 
condition  of  the  book  concern.  From  this  we  gather  several 
facts:  That  the  cash  on  hand  at  the  close  of  the  previous  fiscal 
year  was  $12.70;  the  total  receipts  for  the  present  year,  $1,120.68; 
the  expenditures,  $1,068.45;  cash  in  hand,  $52,23;  its  total  in- 
debtednesss,  $189.54;  its  claims  against  others,  $384.13;  the 
receipts  of  the  store  during  the  year,  $245.24;  the  expenditures, 
$243.23;  the  available  stock  in  hand,  $400.00;  that  all  other 
elici  ts  added  and  sold,  the  total  profits  would  be  $1,230.00;  that 
the  book  concern  may  be  regarded  as  worth  the  sum  of  $1,780.00; 
that  the  committee  a] (pointed  by  the  Bishop  to  revise  the  hymn- 
book  had  nearly  finished  their  work;  that  it  wras  the  design  of 
the  book  steward  to  publish  two  forms  of  the  hymn-book,  one 
for  the  pews,  of  large  print  and  size,  the  other  for  the  pulpit,  of 
smaller  type  and  dimensions ;  that  the  weekly  paper,  the  Chris- 
lid  n  Recorder ,  was  suspended  for  the  want  of  means;  that  it  was 


316 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


his  opinion,  "  nothing  ought  to  induce  the  Conference  to  resume 
its  publication  until  by  some  effort  the  measure  recommended 
by  the  late  General  Conference  be  carried  out  in  raising  capital 
to  do  its  business.  Every  trial  without  a  capital  will  prove  an 
utter  failure  in  the  present  state  of  things.  All  confidence  is 
now  lost.  Therefore,  let  the  public  mind  in  reference  to  the 
paper  take  its  balmy  repose ;  meanwhile,  let  a  capital  be  raised, 
and  then  resume  under  a  fair  prospect  of  restoring  confidence." 

The  church  in  West  Philadelphia  sent  a  memorial  complain- 
ing of  the  fact  that  many  of  its  members  who  could,  would  not 
contribute  to  support  its  institutions,  and  propounding  the  fol- 
lowing question :  "  Is  a  member  of  the  Church,  having  the  abil- 
ity to  contribute  for  its  support,  and  refusing  or  neglecting  so  to 
do,  an  acceptable  one,  and  as  such  entitled  to  all  the  privileges 
of  the  Church?"  It  was  referred  to  a  committee,  who  answered 
in  the  negative.  There  is  a  very  important  principle  involved 
in  this  question  and  answer,  which  does  not  fully  appear  in  their 
present  form.  It  is  this:  "Is  any  man  or  woman  a  Christian 
who  can  but  will  not  support  by  their  money  the  institutions  of 
Christianity?"  The  answer  was  equivalent  to  saying  that  if  a 
man  or  woman  professes  to  be  a  Christian,  but  will  not  give  money 
to  support  the  Christian  institutions  of  the  Church,  that  man, 
or  that  woman,  being  able,  is  not  a  Christian,  and  therefore  is 
not  entitled  to  the  privileges  of  the  Christian  Church.  Our 
opinion  is  that  this  is  a  just  decision.  It  seems  that  after  due 
allowance  is  made  for  absolute  poverty,  decrepitude  and  sickness, 
no  one  should  be  considered  or  treated  as  a  reputable  Christian 
who  does  not  give  to  all  the  institutions  of  Christianity  accord- 
ing to  his  ability;  provided,  that  the  claims  of  these  institutions 
are  fairly  laid  before  them.  Even  the  widow,  whose  poverty  was 
so  abject  that  she  was  reduced  to  two  mites — a  single  farthing, 
could  give — yes,  give  not  one  of  those  mites  and  keep  the 
other,  but  both — her  all,  even  her  all,  her  whole  life,  as  the 
original  has  it.  Those  who  love  much  will  give  much;  those 
who  love  a  little  will  give  but  a  little;  those  who  love  none  will 
give  none. 

If  the  Lord  loves  a  cheerful  giver,  and  he  assures  us  of  this 
truth,  what  must  He  think  of  him  who  gives  grudgingly,  and 
how  does  he  regard  such  a  man?  In  the  case  of  the  poor  widow, 
a  mean  spirit  would  have  said,  "You  have  but  two  mites,  can 
you  spare  one?    No,  you  can't.    Suppose  you  give  one,  what 


African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  L854,  1865.  317 


will  you  do  for  your  bread  and  butter  to-morrow?  You  will 
want  it,  von  better  not  give  it;  no,  you  better  not."  "]  will,11 
said  the  noble  heart  of  this  poor  Christian,  u  I  will  £ive,  not,  one, 
but  both — myall.  I  have  a  Father  in  heaven;  He  will  provide 
forme."  It  was  done,  and  God  did  not  betray  her  confidence. 
She  never  wanted  bread.  No,  never.  "There  is  that,  Bcattereth, 
and  yet  inereaseth;  and  there  is  that  withholdeth  more  than  is 
meet,  but  it  tendet  h  to  poverty."  So,  also,  "  The  Liberal  soul  shall 
be  made  fat,  and  he  that  watereth  shall  be  watered  himself." 

Marcus  Brown  and  William  Henry  had  died  this  year.  The 
former  was  a  native  of  Africa.  He  was  stolen,  and  sold  a  slave  in 
Charleston,  S.  C.  There  he  was  awakened  and  converted  to  God. 
Sometime  after  his  manhood  he  obtained  his  freedom  through 
the  kindness  of  Elder  Morris  Brown,  subsequently  Bishop  Brown, 
and  followed  him  to  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  in  1822-3.  Here  Brother 
Marcus,  under  Bishop  Brown's  auspices,  was  permitted  to  exer- 
cise his  ministerial  gifts  and  graces  as  a  local  preacher.  He  was 
perfectly  illiterate,  and  could  not  utter  the  simplest  sentence  in 
good  English,  and  his  pulpit  performances  did  not  amount  to 
more  than  a  plain  exhortation,  except  when  he  was  telling  his 
experience,  as  he  very  often  did.  He  was  the  most  illiterate 
man  that  was  permitted  to  occupy  the  pulpit  of  old  Bethel.  He 
was  a  local  man  to  be  sure,  but  he  had  an  influence  over  his  in- 
feriors.   He  was  a  good  man,  and  ended  his  career  in  peace. 

In  the  city  of  Baltimore  the  session  of  the  Baltimore  Confer- 
ence was  held  in  1855.  Bishop  Quinn  presided  alone.  Rev. 
A.  W.  Wayman  was  secretary.  Four  young  men  were  admitted 
on  probation  into  the  itinerant  field.  These  were  Leonard  C. 
Speaks,  W.  W.  Grimes,  William  H.  Russell,  John  H.  Gaines. 
Charles  Hicks  wras  received  as  a  local  probationer.  James  Ster- 
ritt  was  admitted  into  full  connection,  and  Michael  Sluby  and 
Jacob  Brooks  were  ordained  elders. 

The  members  in  Society  were  reported  as  five  thousand  five 
hundred  and  eight ;  the  contingent  collection  amounted  to  $258.09; 
the  two-cent  collection  to  $193.28 ;  for  episcopal  support,  $153.98. 
Conference  decided  to  raise  $200  for  the  last  object  the  ensuing 
year.  Local  delegates  were  elected  to  the  approaching  General 
Conference  in  the  persons  of  C.  Dunn,  D.  W.  Moore,  W.  H.  G. 
Brown,  C.  Hicks,  J.  W.  Brown,  J.  L.  Brister,  S.  S.  Carr  and  C. 
Dobson. 

After  a  protracted  discussion  it  was  decided  that  two  ministers 


318 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


were  to  be  appointed  to  Bethel  Church,  in  the  city  of  Baltimore, 
one  of  whom  was  to  take  the  special  charge  of  a  mission  to  be 
opened  in  that  city.  Rev.  J.  A.  Shorter  was  the  mover  of  this 
motion,  and  at  the  instance  of  Rev.  A.  Massey,  the  Lewiston 
Circuit,  in  the  state  of  Delaware,  was  divided  into  the  George- 
town and  Lewiston  Circuits.  When  the  cause  of  missions  came 
up,  resolutions  were  submitted  and  approved  which,  in  addition 
to  home  fields,  looked  to  foreign  lands  by  recommending  the 
opening  of  a  correspondence  with  the  Liberia  Mission  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  in  Africa. 

As  usual,  the  Philadelphia  ministry  held  their  Annual  Con- 
ference in  Philadelphia  this  year.  Bishop  Nazrey  presided, 
assisted  by  Bishop  Quinn.  Rev.  Joshua  Woodlin  was  secretary. 
Four  young  men  were  admitted  into  the  itinerant  field  as  proba- 
tioners— Joshua  Woodlin,  Robert  Gibson,  John  T.  Jackson  and 
Jeremiah  Young.  Joseph  A.  Smith  was  admitted  into  full  con- 
nection. Rev.  William  T.  Catto  withdrew  from  us  and  joined 
the  Old  School  Presbyterians.  Three  were  numbered  with  the 
dead— Edward  M.  Ferris,  William  Harmon  and  William  N. 
Brown. 

The  delegates  elected  to  the  General  Conference  of  1856  were 
Dr.  .J.  .1.  (I.  Bias,  S.  Smith,.).  P.  B.  Eddy,  -I.  M.  Brown,  Robert 
Collins,  A.  Johnson,  L.  J.  Conover  and  II.  Dickerson. 

The  genera]  traveling  book  agent  resigned  from  his  agency. 
So,  within  three  years  the  three  chief  officers  of  the  hook  concern 
had  all  resigned  and  forsaken  that  particular  lield  of  labor. 
Rev.  William  T.  Catto,  the  general  book  steward,  resigned  within 
three  months  from  the  day  of  his  election  ;  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark, 
the  editor  and  general  book  steward,  resigned  at  the  end  of  two 
years  ;  and  Rev.  William  II.  Jones,  the  book  agent,  now  resigns  at 
the  end  of  three  years.  This  would  seem  to  prove;  to  every  discrim- 
inating mind  that  our  Church  was  not  yet  prepared  to  sustain  'a 
literary  department.  These  three  brethren  were  among  our  best 
educated  men,  and  as  for  the  last  mentioned  he  was  neither 
wanting  in  intelligence,  activity  nor  thrift,  because  he  himself 
had  published  more  literary  matter  upon  his  own  responsibility 
than  the  whole  book  committee  put  together.  These  facts  may 
have  set  the  brethren  to  thinking,  as  Rev.  P.  Gardner  proposed 
to  be  one  of  an  hundred  men  to  pay  one  dollar  monthly  for  one 
year  to  support  the  Christian  Recorder,  whereupon  Rev.  Stephen 
Smith  proposed  to  give  one  hundred  dollars  if  fifty  men  would 


African  Methodism  in  the  railed  States  i,,  1854,  1855.  319 


pay  fifty  dollars,  or  if  one  hundred  men  would  give  one  hundred 
he  would  give  two  hundred.  Bui  there  was  nol  enough  public 
spirit  in  the  Conference  to  accept  the  propositions  of  either  of 
the  two  men.  All  that  could  be  raised  on  the  spot  iu  this  behalf 
was  $21.00;  but  it  was  resolved  to  publish  the  Christian  Recorder 
semi-monthly  as  Long  as  it  could  be  sustained. 

The  genera]  book  steward  reported  $988.57  as  receipts  for  the 
year,  and  $1,000.50  as  the  expenditures.  Still  the  district  raised 
this  year  for  the  support  of  the  various  institutions  of  the  Church 
$&,960.79. 

The  Committee  on  Missions  advised  the  establishment  of  a 
Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society;  that  all  the  means  raised 
for  this  purpose  be  forwarded  to  the  general  hook  steward,  to  he 
deposited  iu  the  hands  of  the  book  concern  treasurer,  and  believed 
that  if  the  rules  of  the  Discipline  on  this  subject  were  enforced,  no 
small  amount  of  means  could  be  raised  within  a  short  time  to 
send  one  or  more  missionaries  to  Africa,  or  any  other  foreign 
point.  They  also  recommended  the  sending  of  a  missionary  to 
take  care  of  the  Stroudsburg  Mission,  which  had  been  opened  in 
1853;  and  also  to  provide  support  for  a  city  missionary  whose 
field  should  extend  over  Philadelphia  and  its  vicinity.  In  this 
connection  a  very  revolutionary  motion  wras  injudiciously  adopted 
by  this  Conference.  It  empowered  the  Bishop  to  ordain  a  man 
for  missionary  purposes  by  bringing  him  before  any  Quarterly 
Conference  of  the  African  M.  E.  Church. 

Bishop  Nazrey's  annual  address  this  year  was  full  of  practical 
advice.  He  still  pleaded  for  a  foreign  mission,  referring  to  the 
fact  that  in  the  "early  days  of  the  Church"  there  was  a  "  mis- 
sionary in  Africa  and  St.  Domingo  from  our  Connection."  He 
felt  that  "the  spirit  had  died,"  and  prayed  for  an  awakening. 
He  also  said,  "Those  who  will  sit  down  in  the  Church  and  enjoy 
all  its  blessings  and  privileges,  and  do  nothing  to  sustain  it,  are 
doing  the  work  of  the  slaveholder  in  oppressing  the  poor  or  his 
brother;  and  the  minister  or  preacher  who  will  favor  such,  or 
encourage  it,  is  partaking  of  and  indulging  in  the  same  sin." 
The  Bishop,  among  other  decisions,  made  two,  which  for  their 
truthfulness  and  equity  deserve  special  mention. 

A  question  arose  in  Conference  in  relation  to  what  would  be  a 
justifiable  process  of  law.    The  Bishop  decided — 

"  1.  That  it  was  governed  by  circumstances;  for  instance,  if  a 
member  of  the  Church  is  acting  under  the  direction  of  the  com- 


320 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


moh  Law,  and  is  bound  by  oath  to  make  returns  at  a  court  or  any 
other  place,  according  to  law,  and  comes  in  contact  with  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Church  whose  nets  arc  about  to  make  him  violate  his 
oath  or  forfeit  his  obligation  to  the  court,  it  would  constitute  a 
justifiable  process  at  law. 

2.  "If  a  member  is  in  debt  to  another,  or  has  done  him  a  seri- 
ous injury,  and  is  fleeing  from  justice,  the  aggrieved  parties  would 
be  justifiable  in  a  process  at  the  civil  law,  from  the  fact  that  in 
the  one  case  the  Church  has  no  power  to  act,  and  in  the  other 
it  has  not  time  to  arrest  the  parties  fleeing  from  justice;  and 
other  similar  cases  according  to  circumstances." 

On  the  19th  of  May  the  New  York  Annual  Conference  con- 
vened, Bishop  Quinn  presiding  alone,  with  Rev.  Leonard  Patter- 
son secretary.  Four  preachers  were  admitted  on  probation — 
Edward  Thompson,  Richard  J.  Cliff,  Jeremiah  V.  Thomas  and 
E.  Sparrow.  Leonard  Patterson  and  Edward  Thompson  were 
ordained  elders  for  the  itinerant  service,  and  Joshua  Jenkins  for 
the  local.  George  C.  Clark  and  Willis  Jones  were  ordained  local 
deacons.  The  total  number  of  communicants  in  these  churches 
were  reported  as  two  thousand  and  eighty-eight.  The  total  of 
the  collections  which  were  reported  reached  $2,505.64,  many 
Sunday-schools  not  reporting  what  was  raised  to  sustain  them. 
The  Daughters  of  Conference  gave  $206.68.  Delegates  to  the 
General  Conference  were  elected:  Edward  Johnson  and  J.  E. 
Dallas,  of  New  York  City,  and  George  Wills,  of  Long  Island. 

Brother  Thomas  Legg  was  the  only  one  whose  death  was 
recorded.  Rev.  J.  M.  Williams,  one  of. the  leading  members  of 
the  New  York  Conference,  has  written  of  him:  "Brother  Legg 
was  horn  in  Sangerties,  Ulster  county,  state  of  New  York,  De- 
cember 20th,  1820,  and  died  in  Newark,  N.  J.,  September  8th, 
1854,  in  the  thirty-fifth  year  of  his  age.  He  was  the  subject  of 
converting  grace  in  the  year  1845.  He  connected  himself  with 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  in  Second  street,  New  York.  He  was 
licensed  to  preach  in  1847.  In  1852  he  joined  the  itinerant 
service,  and  was  appointed  to  the  Huntingdon  Circuit,  Long 
Island,  which  he  traveled  for  two  years.  In  1854  he  was  ap- 
pointed to  the  West  Chester  Circuit,  which  he  traveled  about 
three  months,  when  he  was  attacked  by  the  hasty  consumption 
and  bleeding  at  the  lungs,  which  soon  brought  him  to  the  grave. 
He  left  a  wife,  mother,  sisters  and  many  friends  to  mourn  their 
loss.    Brother  Thomas  Legg  was  a  man  of  fine  talents  and  of 


African  Methodism  vn  the  United  States  in  1854,  1855.  321 


great  promise  as  a  Christian  minister,  and  a  young  man  of  ardent 
and  devoted  piety.  Under  a  deep  conviction  of  his  ministerial 
responsibility,  he  prosecuted  his  work  with  undeviating  fidelity. 
As  his  health  declined,  there  was  a  manifest  ripening  for  heaven, 
and  the  people  of  his  charge  will  not  soon  forget  the  almost 
inspired  words  which  fell  from  his  lips  as  lie  addressed  them  for 
the  last  time,  almost  from  the  borders  <>t  the  grave.  Brother 
Legg  was  a  zealous  and  useful  laborer  in  the  vineyard  of  the 
Lord.  He  died  as  the  Christian  and  Christian  minister  should 
die — in  the  triumphs  of  the  Christian  faith;  and  in  the  solemn 
hour  of  death  he  was  permitted  to  realize  that  unto  the  upright 
there  ariseth  Light  in  the  darkness.  Our  brother  sleeps  in  Jesus, 
and  rests  in  heaven." 

The  month  of  -June  saw  the  Annual  Conference  of  the  New 
England  churches  in  session  in  Providence,  R.  I.  William  Wat- 
son was  secretary,  and  Bishop  Nazrey  presided  alone.  Two 
young  men  were  admitted  on  trial — Thomas  Sunrise  and  George 
A.  Rue.  Ransom  Parker,  a  local  deacon,  was  admitted  into  full 
connection.  Jacob  Mitchell  was  ordained  an  elder;  Charles  H. 
Pierce  and  William  M.  Watson,  deacons.  Six  hundred  and 
sixty-one  members  were  in  communion.  The  total  amount 
raised  for  contingent  expenses  was  only  $60.45,  while  the  total  of 
all  moneys  raised — for  support  of  ministry  and  missions,  two-cent 
money,  Sunday-schools  and  episcopal  support — reached  $1,101.52. 

A  fault  common  to  all  the  Conferences  was  the  omission  to 
report  amounts  raised  for  fuel,  house-rent  and  board  for  the  pas- 
tors. It  is  certainly  a  great  omission,  at  once  unjust  to  the 
people  and  to  themselves. 

Bishop  Nazrey  gave  the  Conference  his  usual  wholesome  advice. 
Resolutions  were  passed  on  the  usual  subjects,  and  the  ministry 
parted  without  having  made  any  provision  for  local  delegates  to 
the  General  Conference. 

The  three  Bishops  were  present  at  the  meeting  of  the  ministry 
of  the  Canadian  churches,  on  July  21st,  in  the  town  of  Chatham. 
Bishop  Payne  was  president  of  the  Conference,  but  the  three 
presided  alternately.  Brother  I.  W.  Hall  was  received  on  proba- 
tion, and,  with  Benjamin  Stuart,  was  ordained  to  the  office  of 
elder,  as  was  L.  C.  Chambers  to  that  of  local  deacon.  The  com- 
municants of  the  churches  were  numbered  as  two  thousand  and 
ninety  souls.  The  .total  of  moneys  raised  was  $1,076.70, 
21 


322 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Rev.  Benjamin  Stuart  here  started  the  movement  which  we 
shall  see  developed  later  on.  He  presented  the  following  docu- 
ment : 

Whereas,  We,  the  members  of  the  Canada  Annual  Conference  of  the 
A.  M.  K.  Church,  now  in  session  in  the  town  of  Chatham,  Canada  West, 
see  the  great  disadvantages  under  which  we  labor  by  not  having  a  Dis- 
cipline in  conformity  with  the  laws  of  the  province  in  which  we  live; 
therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  it  is  our  indispensable  duty  to  have  a  Book  of  Discipline 
in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  Her  Most  Gracious  Majesty,  under  whose 
scepter  we  enjoy  our  rights  as  men  ;  and  that  we  do  hereby  petition  the 
General  Conference  to  set  us  apart  as  a  separate  body. 

This  preamble  and  resolution  fell  upon  the  ear  of  the  Confer- 
ence like  a  clap  of  thunder  in  a  clear  sky.  The  mover  of  this 
had  been  all  his  life  a  member  of  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Con- 
ference, and  had  heen  resident  in  the  province  just  ahout  twelve 
months.  Apparently,  he  was  the  most  timid  man  present — how 
came  it  to  pass  that  he  should  make  so  bold  a  movement.  The 
answer  was  found  in  every  man's  inner  consciousness.  There 
was  an  absolute  need  for  it.  That  need  was  clearly  set  forth  in 
the  document  presented,  and  every  man  present  who  was  ac- 
quainted with  the  stale  of  things  in  Canada  knew  that  the  docu- 
ment stated  a  fact  that  no  reasonable  man  would  attempt  to 
deny.  Hence,  alter  due  consideration  of  the  question,  it  was 
unanimously  carried.  Bishops  Nazrey  and  Payne  assented  to 
the  measure  as  needful,  just  and  beneficial.  P>ishop  Quinn  was 
apparently  elated.  He  arose  and  declared  himself  a  British  sub- 
ject by  birth,  which  relation  to  the  British  government  he  had 
never  forfeited.  He  said  that  he  had  property  in  the  province. 
"Bishop  Nazrey  is  already  here,"  he  continued;  "  I  will  soon  be 
here,  and  very  likely  my  other  colleague  will  ultimately  make 
his  home  here  from  the  very  force  of  circumstances.  Indeed,  I 
believe  we  shall  all  make  our  homes  here."* 

It  will  be  seen  that  we  were  approaching  a  period  in  which 
some  great  changes  were  to  take  place.  The  Canadian  churches 
were  to  detach  themselves  from  the  A.  M.  E.  Connection,  and 
education  was  to  crystalize  into  a  specific  shape  for  our  people. 

The  Ohio  Annual  Conference  met  in  August,  in  Columbus, 
Ohio.    All  the  Bishops  were  present,  and  J.  P.  Underwood  and 

*  Bishop  Quinn's  remarks  were  induced  by  the  unhappy  condition  of 
our  people  resulting  from  the  action  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law. 


African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  L854,  1855.  323 


Edward  Davis  were  secretaries.  John  Ridgeway,  L.  T.  -Jones 
and  John  Til>l>s  were  ordained  elders.  Richard  C.  Gardener  was 
ordained  a  deacon.  James  II.  Payne  was  admitted  into  the  itin- 
erant service  on  probation.  One  young  itinerant,  Rev.  James 
F.  Copeland,  had  died.  He  was  a  young  man  of  twenty-six 
years,  well  educated,  urbane  in  his  manners,  prepossessing  in 
appearance  and  of  sound  character,  lie  promised  a  long  career 
of  usefulness,  but  so  rapid  were  the  invasions  of  that  disease, 
pulmonary  affection,  that  he  was  able  to  preach  but  one  sermon 
in  the  Columbus  Station,  where  he  had  been  sent.  He  died 
November  21st,  1-854. 

The  Ohio  churches  had  raised  this  year  for  preachers'  support — 
salaries  alone — $2,034.45;  and  the  total  amount  of  moneys  re- 
ported for  1855,  in  this  district,  was  $2,41)7.93. 

This  was  an  interesting  session.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Asbury  of  the 
M.  E.  Church,  once  an  itinerant,  now  a  local  preacher,  was  intro- 
duced to  the  Conference  by  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark,  and  addressed  the 
body  on  the  great  question  of  education,  substantially,  as  follows  : 

He  resolved  many  years  ago  that  if  he  ever  became  wealthy  he 
would  act  as  a  steward  for  God.  Through  his  own  labors,  by 
God's  blessings,  he  had  come  into  possession  of  some  of  the  most 
valuable  real  estate  in  the  city  of  Columbus.  By  invitation  of 
Rev.  M.  M.  (dark  he  had  paid  a  visit  to  the  Union  Seminary.  He 
was  disappointed  in  his  expectations  of  it.  He  said  that  it  did 
not  afford  the  conveniences  nor  facilities  of  a  common  district 
village  school,  and  that  the  population  around  it  did  not  justify 
its  continuance.  If  it  were  his  own  property  he  would  sell  it 
and  purchase  in  another  position  where  patronage  and  advan- 
tages could  be  found  sufficient  to  sustain  it.  In  a  word,  he  recom- 
mended the  establishment  of  a  manual  labor  school,  in  which  all 
the  sciences  should  be  taught,  but  not  the  dead  languages. 

He  alluded  to  an  Annual  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
which,  at  a  time  when  the  state  of  education  was  so  low  among 
the  people  of  that  denomination,  had  sent  out  four  or  five  agents 
to  collect  moneys  for  educational  purposes,  but  they  had  all 
failed;  finally,  he  was  sent  out,  and,  after  great  diligence  and 
Labor,  succeeded.  Since  the  M.  E.  Church  has  multiplied  semi- 
naries of  the  highest  order,  till  they  now  number  more  than  sixty, 
besides  ten  colleges.  He  said  laziness  and  a  want  of  thrift  are  a 
curse  to  the  people  of  color — that  the  men  who  let  their  wives 
follow  washing  clothes  for  their  bread,  till  they  sunk  from  exces- 


324 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sive  labor  into  their  graves,  are  murderers.  He  respected  the 
honest,  intelligent,  wealthy  colored  man  as  he  docs  the  white. 
If  the  colored  people  as  a  mass  would  be  laborious,  industrious 
and  economical,  all  parts  of  the  community,  private  men  and 
legislators,  would  come  up  to  their  help. 

Many  years  ago  he  had  labored  for  the  advancement  of  Metho- 
dism, through  heat  and  cold,  sometimes  with  a  sheet  of  frost 
upon  liis  face  ;  he  was  not  discouraged ;  he  foresaw  that  his  labors 
would  result  in  great  good,  and  he  has  lived  to  see  his  hopes  ful- 
filled.   Now  the  M.  E.  Church  is  numerous,  powerful  and  rich. 

He  related  an  interview  which  he  had  with  Bishop  Asbury 
over  forty  years  ago,  in  which  that  venerable  prelate  encouraged 
him  to  persevere  in  his  labors  amid  all  the  difficulties  which  sur- 
rounded him.  He  gave  a  sketch  of  his  itinerant  life.  It  abounded 
in  thrilling  anecdotes,  showing  the  hardships  which  the  itin- 
erancy of  that  day  had  to  endure,  and  the  moral  strength  which 
was  furnished  them  from  on  high  to  conquer  difficulties  and  win 
souls  for  Christ. 

About  twenty-four  hours  after,  the  Rev.  John  F.  Wright,  agent 
of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  appeared  in 
the  midst  of  our  Conference.  Bishop  Payne  was  then  called  upon 
by  the  Conference  to  present  any  documents  or  correspondence  in 
his  possession  touching  the  propositions  of  the  Cincinnati  Con- 
ference to  establish  a  school  of  a  high  order  for  the  education  of 
colored  children  and  youth.  After  they  were  produced  and  read, 
Rev.  Wright  addressed  the  Conference.  He  wished  to  have  it 
understood  that  be  appeared  there  as  an  advocate  of  the  highest 
interests  of  the  colored  man.  This  venerable  man  of  God  then 
showed  in  a  clear  and  impressive  manner  the  disadvantages  under 
which  we  labor.  He  said  even  the  benevolent  provisions  of  the 
state  Laws  of  Ohio  concerning  our  education  were,  in  many  in- 
stances, rendered  null  and  void  through  the  prejudices  of  the 
w bites  :  this  he  confessed  with  shame.  He  showed  the  difference 
between  the  power  of  the  rich  man  and  that  of  the  educated, 
making  many  pertinent  remarks  touching  the  great  subject,  and 
alluding  to  the  approaching  General  Conference  of  his  own  and 
of  our  Church,  and  the  good  which  might  result  from  the  com- 
bined action  and  influences  of  the  two  bodies. 

It  was  an  occasion  for  felicitous  speeches,  and  they  were  made, 
with  the  motion  presenting  Rev.  Wright  a  vote  of  thanks,  by 
M.  M.  Clark  and  A,  R.  Green,  the  latter  referring  to  the  time 


African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  in  1S54,  1866. 

when  he  Lay  sick  and  helpless  in  Cincinnati  and  Brother  Wright 
visited  him,  consoled  him,  and  prayed  with  him.  He  welcomed 
this  movement  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  as  a  heaven-sent 
blessing,  and  thought  that  we  ought  to  give  it  our  hearty  support. 

Rev.  John  Peck,  lull  of  years  and  rich  in  experience  among 
his  down-trodden  race,  rose  and,  in  a  powerful  speech  that  was 
full  of  pathos  and  fiery  words,  hailed  the  enterprise  of  the  Cin- 
cinnati Conference  as  the  very  thing  we  needed,  lie  had  long 
listened  to  the  professions  of  friendship  which  were  made  by  the 
members  of  tic  M.  E.  Church.  These  were  all  good  in  them- 
selves, hut  they  were  nothing  more  than  wrords.  Here,  however, 
was  something  practical — a  deed  that  would  result  in  real  and 
permanent  benefit  to  our  people.  He  had  spent  the  better  part 
of  a  long  life  laboring  for  the  elevation  of  his  injured  people, 
and  now  in  its  decline  he  was  about  to  see  his  ardent  prayer- 
answered  and  his  hopes  realized.  The  M.  E.  Church  had  it  in 
her  power  to  do  much — it  was  her  duty  to  do  much — and  she 
was  about  to  do  something  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  most  need 
her  aid.  With  streaming  eyes  this  "  old  man  eloquent "  sat  down, 
surrounded  by  the  throbbing  hearts  of  his  brethren. 

The  report  of  the  board  of  managers  of  Union  Seminary  was 
a  confirmation  of  the  statements  of  Mr.  Asbury.  It  was  also 
learned  that  the  establishment  of  another  seminary  of  learning, 
to  be  called  Quinn  Seminary,  was  in  the  minds  and  on  the  hearts 
of  the  brethren  on  Marshall  Circuit,  Michigan ;  but  while  the 
Conference  resolved  to  give  their  "sympathies"  to  the  enter- 
prise, these  assumed  no  practical  form.  Such  institutions  are 
not  sustained  by  "  sympathies." 

The  Indiana  Conference  met  this  year  (1855)  on  the  beautiful 
camp-ground  in  the  midst  of  the  Lost  Creek  settlement,  in  Vigo 
county,  state  of  Indiana,  September  1st.  Bishop  Payne  was 
president  of  the  Conference  district,  but  all  three  Bishops  wrere 
present,  and  presided  alternately.  Five  were  admitted  on  proba- 
tion— P.  Tyler,  Lewis  Finley,  Samuel  Chandler,  I.  R.  Revels  and 
York  Collier.  Of  these  but  one  has  served  the  itinerant  cause. 
York  Collier  and  David  Wilson  were  recommended  for  the  ofiice 
of  local  deacons,  and  Brother  W.  A.  Dove  was  received  fully  into 
the  itinerant  service. 

The  total  number  of  communicants  were  three  thousand  five 
hundred  and  three — an  increase  of  ten.  The  total  sum  of  moneys 
raised  reached  $2,655.20,  and  the  benevolent  societies  of  New  Or- 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


leans  donated  847.00.  At  this  time  the  total  amount  in  the  mis- 
sionary treasury  was  1150-15.  Communications  to  Conference  in- 
cluded a  letter  from  Rev.  Thomas  M.  I).  Ward,  giving  an  account  of 
the  California  Mission,  and  documents  from  Rev.  Wright  in  rela- 
tion to  the  matters  of  education  presented  to  the  Ohio  Conference. 

The  educational  report  came  from  the  committee,  recommend- 
ing that  an  "intelligent  committee''  be  appointed,  authorized  to 
propose  and  receive  any  proposition  "which  our  brethren  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  have  to  offer."  It  also  recommended  that  the  pre- 
siding Bishop  act  with  that  committee.  It  further  suggested  that 
"meanwhile  Ave  should  be  actively  engaged  in  building  up  the 
cause  of  education  in  our  midst,''  and  to  this  end  the  suggestion 
was  made,  if  negotiations  failed  to  secure  an  interest  in  Union 
Seminary,  a  location  be  selected  "somewhere  in  the  state  of  In- 
diana or  Illinois  for  a  seminary."  It  also  recommended  the 
establishment  of  an  organ  "through  which  we  can  publish  our 
thoughts,  thus  concentrating  our  great  work." 

It  will  be  seen  by  all  these  movements  that  aside  from  freedom, 
the  one  great  theme  engaging  the  hearts  and  souls  of  the  people 
was  that  of  education.  This  report  was  a  most  truthful  document, 
transparent  as  truthful,  and  bearing  an  awful  testimony  before 
God  and  Christendom  against  the  pseudo-Christianity,  pseudo- 
philanthropy,  and  pseudo-democracy  of  this  pseudo-Republic. 

For  the  first  time,  at  the  instance  of  the  presiding  Bishop, 
particular  days  in  the  ensuing  year  were  set  apart  to  take  up  the 
several  Conference  collections.  The  election  of  local  delegates 
to  General  Conference  resulted  in  the  selection  of  E.  Mcintosh, 
C.  M.  Barber,  A.  Hall.  Y.  Collier,  D.  Stokes  and  W.  H.  Rice. 

Some  changes  took  place  in  the  district.  The  Alton  Circuit 
was  divided  into  two — the  Alton  Circuit,  embracing  four  churches 
at  Alton,  Brooklyn.  Ridge  Prairie  and  Rocky  Flat;  the  Chester 
Circuit,  embracing  the  six  churches  of  Chester.  Sparta,  Mt. 
Vernon,  Bellville,  Shoal  Creek  and  Turkey  Hill.  Madison 
Church  was  attached  to  the  Charleston  Circuit,  as  it  was  too 
poor  to  support  a  stationed  preacher.  The  St.  Paul  Mission,  in 
Minnesota,  and  the  Wisconsin  Missions  were  voted  to  be  opened 
— the  former  embracing  no  other  place,  but  the  latter  taking  in 
Racine,  Milwaukee,  Madison  and  Knoshea. 

This  year  saw  the  setting  off  of  a  new  Conference  district — 
the  Missouri  Churches,  as  they  were  to  be  called.  For  several 
years  past  it  had  been  seen  by  many  that  the  Indiana  Confer- 


African  Methodism  vn  the  United  States  vn  1854,  L865.  B2*i 


ence  stretched  over  such  a  vrasl  territory  that  it  was  very  expen- 
sive for  many  of  the  Laborers  at  the  extreme  points  to  reach 
annually  the  scat  of  Conference.  Moreover,  our  churches  in  the 
slaveholding  portions  found  it  very  prejudicial  to  them  to  be 
constrained  to  send  their  pastors  into  the  free  states,  or  to  receive 
pastors  from  them.  It  was  therefore  deemed  judicious  to  divide 
the  [ndiana  Conference,  and  to  call  one  of  the  parts  the  Missouri 
— to  embrace  all  the  churches  in  the  slaveholding  states  of  the 
Wesl  and  Southwest.  At  the  Last  meeting  of  the  Indiana  Con- 
ference, and  according  to  the  power  vested  in  it  by  the  General 
Conference  of  1862,  it  was  decreed  that  this  should  be  done,  and 
a  committee  was  appointed  to  la  v  off  the  boundaries.  This  com- 
mittee, consisting  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Brown,  Rev.  A.  M.  Parker  and 
Rev.  W.  R.  Revels,  reported  "that  the  boundary  be  all  the  state 
of  Missouri;  all  Illinois  south  of  Longitude  o8°,  running  in  a 
straight  line  from  the  Mississippi  River  to  the  Wabash;  all  Ken- 
tucky west  of  the  Kentucky  River;  Tennessee,  Mississippi,  Lou- 
isiana and  Alabama."  This  was  approved,  and  the  laborers 
divided  on  the  spot  and  notified  to  meet  on  the  13th  of  Septem- 
ber, 1855,  at  9  a.  M.,  in  the  city  of  Louisville,  Ky.  There  the 
following  brethren  appeared  at  that  time  in  Quinn  Chapel: 
Bishops  W.  P.  Quinn  and  D.  A.  Payne;  Elders  W  illis  R.  Revels, 
Aaron  M.  Parker,  John  M.  Brown,  Willis  Miles,  E.  Wilkerson, 
Charles  Doughty;  Deacons  Basil  L.  Brooks,  Salem  Campbell, 
John  Mi  Garrow,  Page  Tyler;  Licentiate  Lewis  Pinley.  All 
these  were  itinerants. 

Bishop  Payne  pronounced  the  address  of  this  new  Conference, 
of  which  John  M.  Brown,  of  New  Orleans,  was  secretary.  "The 
Holy  Communion  was  then  celebrated  by  all  the  ministers  and 
brethren  present.  A  deeply  solemn  and  impressive  season  it 
was."  Rev.  Tyler  and  Lewis  Pinley  were  placed  as  probationers 
among  the  itinerants ;  York  Collier  and  Clark  M.  Barber  among 
the  local.  Basil  L.  Brooks  was  ordained  an  elder.  A  preachers' 
aid  society  was  organized;  also  a  missionary  society,  and  a  soci- 
ety for  mental  and  moral  improvement.  The  spirit  and  senti- 
ment of  this  new-born  Conference  on  missions  and  Sunday- 
schools  were  excellent,  as  the  reports  bore  evidence.  At  its  or- 
ganization the  Missouri  Conference  contained  one  thousand  six 
hundred  and  ninety-eight  members  in  Society.  There  were  col- 
lected lor  contingent  money  $67.43,  and  the  Conference  ordered 
the  sum  of  $108.00  to  be  raised  for  episcopal  support. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

GENERAL  CONFERENCE  OF  1856. 

Quadrennial  Address— Attention  Called  to  the  Increasing  Literary  Advan- 
tages— Need  of  Financial  Improvement — Need  of  "Oneness  of  Adminis- 
tration"—  The  Book  Concern  Incorporated  —  Request  of  Canadian 
Churches  for  Separation  Granted — Report  of  Committee  on  Slavery— A 
Lengthy  Debate  Results. 

THE  Tenth  General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
convened  in  the  city  of  Cincinnati,  state  of  Ohio,  May  5th, 
1850.    It  was  opened  by  Bishop  Quinn,  then  senior  Bishop, 
who  gave  out  the  hymn, 

"  Come,  Let  us  use  the  grace  divine," 

and  then  addressed  the  throne  of  grace,  after  which  Bishop 
Payne  read  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  John. 
The  secretaries  finally  elected  were  Rev.  A.  W.  Way  man,  Rev. 
James  and  Rev.  George  Broadie.  A  committee  of  one  from  each 
Conference  was  appointed  to  draft  rules  for  the  government  of 
the  Genera]  Conference,  with  A.  R.  Green  chairman.  His  col- 
leagues were  AVayman,  of  Baltimore;  Moore,  of  Philadelphia; 
Turner,  of  Indiana;  Ed.  Johnson,  of  New  York;  Broadie,  of 
Canada;  and  W.  R.  Revels,  of  Missouri.  Their  work  received 
the  approval  of  the  Conference. 

The  Quadrennial  Address  of  the  Bishops  is  of  such  a  nature 
that  it  is  here  presented  in  full : 

Reverend  and  Dear  Brethren: — In  the  opening  of  the  Tenth  General 
Conference  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  it  is  our  duty  to 
address  you  on  subjects  relating  to  the  gmeral  government  and  prosperity 
of  the  Connection  ;  particularly  on  such  points  the  importance  and  utility 
of  which  have  been  experimentally  and  providentially  impressed  upon 
our  minds. 

Respecting  the  ministry,  we  feel,  as  her*  tofore,  that  we  all  ought  to  cul- 
tivate our  minds  by  the  study  of  every  science — physical,  mental  and 
moral—to  the  end  that  we  may  be  better  qualified  for  the  study  and  just 
apprehension  of  the  great  Book  of  Books— the  Bible.  The  sciences  to 
wdiich  allusion  is  made  unfold  nature  in  her  varied,  interesting  and  beauti- 
ful forms,  and  thus  introduce  us  to  the  God  of  nature,  who  made  her  for 
and  uses  her  as  a  medium  through  which  he  manifests  himself  to  man. 
(  328  ) 


General  Conference  of  1856. 


829 


God  has  also  gi  ven  us  the  Bible,  and  uses  that  wondrous  book — like  nature 
— only  as  a  medium  for  revealing  to  man  sueh  features  of  his  character  as 
could  not  be  realized  byth«  st  udy  of  nature  alone.  En  the  statement  of 
this  glorious  truth  we  see  the  relation  which  nature  bears  to  the  Bible — 
which  science  sustains  to  revelation.  Consequently,  he  who  would  read 
his  Bible  intelligently,  and  understand  it  thoroughly,  must  also  make  him- 
self familiar  with  science  ;  for,  as  they  mutually  shadow  forth  the  Almighty 
One,  so  they  mutually  illustrate  and  confirm  each  other.  Indeed,  there 
are  many  portions  of  the  word  of  God,  the  meaning,  force,  beauty  and 
truth  of  which  cannot  be  realized  without  a  large  amount  of  scientific; 
information;  To  make  this  evident  we  could  adduce  many  passages  from 
the  sacred  text.  Let  one  suffice.  That  is  the  139th  Psalm,  particularly 
the  14th  verse:  "I  will  praise  thee;  for  I  am  fearfully  and  wonderfully 
made:  marvelous  are  thy  works ;  and  that  my  soul  knoweth  right  well." 
A  careful  analysis  of  this  text  will  show  that  it  cannot  be  thoroughly  un- 
derstood by  the  preacher,  nor  rendered  intelligible  to  the  hearers,  without 
some  knowledge  of  anatomy,  physiology,  metaphysics  and  ethics. 

No  man  should  be  more  intelligent  than  the  ambassador  of  the  Cross; 
because  no  position  is  so  commanding,  and  no  office  freighted  with  such 
important  results  as  his.  The  instructor  alike  of  the  learned  and  the 
ignorant,  of  the  servant  and  his  master,  of  the  king  and  the  peasant, 
should  be  well  furnished  with  every  species  of  useful  knowledge.  And 
still  more  :  Of  all  the  ministers  of  Christ,  there  is  no  class  who  need  to  be 
so  thoroughly  educated  as  those  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
Called  to  traverse  almost  every  section  of  this  vast  Republic- -now  in  the 
North,  then  in  the  South;  to-day  in  the  East,  to-morrow  in  the  West;  at 
one  time  to  speak  in  the  presence  of  the  most  refined  and  enlightened  ; 
the  next  before  the  most  ignorant  and  rude;  sometimes  advocating  the 
claims  of  the  Cross  before  those  who  believe  that  God  "hath  made  of  one 
blood  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  all  the  face  of  the  earth,"  and  then 
before  those  who  ignore  this  divine  truth  by  declaring  that  the  man  of 
color  is  nothing  more  than  the  connecting  link  between  the  man  and  the 
brute— they  should  so  acquit  themselves,  both  in  and  out  of  the  pulpit,  as 
to  constrain  our  enemies  to  acknowledge  the  doctrine  of  the  unity  of  the 
human  race,  and  our  downtrodden  people  as  an  integral  part  of  it.  We, 
therefore,  affectionately  urge  all  our  young  men  to  bestir  themselves,  and 
omit  no  opportunity  of  mental  culture.  That  they  may  have  the  means 
to  purchase  needed  books,  let  them  abandon  every  needless  expense, 
especially  such  as  cigars  and  chewing  tobacco.  Let  them  also  postpone 
the  day  of  marriage  till  they  shall  have  mastered  the  sciences,  or  made,  at 
least,  some  respectable  progress  in  them. 

The  literary  advantages  which  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  has  opened 
to  our  access  demand  our  gratitude,  our  praise,  our  love.  Twenty-one 
years  ago  there  were  but  two  institutions  of  a  high  order  in  the  whole 
Union  wrhere  colored  men  could  be  educated  in  the  same  class  and  on  an 
equality  with  the  whites.  These  were  Oberlin  and  Oneida.  The  latter  has 
ceased  to  exist;  the  former  still  flourishes  as  a  green  bay  tree,  and  has  edu- 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Ch  ii  i'r/i. 


cated  more  colored  young  men  and  women  than  all  put  together.  One  of 
her  graduates,  Mr.  George  B.  Vashon,  is  now  filling  a  professor's  chair  in 
Central  College,  N.  Y.  Iberia  and  the  Albany  Manual  Labor  University, 
in  the  state  of  Ohio,  are  doing  a  good  work  for  us.  The  last  mentioned  has 
created,  in  its  immediate  neighborhood,  a  social  and  civil  atmosphere  in 
which  the  colored  man  can  breathe  equality  with  others.  Not  only  schol- 
arships but  also  ownerships  can  be  purchased  in  it.  This  will  enable 
parents  to  send  their  children  to  it,  not  by  permission  merely,  but  as  a 
matter  of  right."  * 

Nor  should  we  forgot  Avery  College,  founded  for  the  special  benefit  of 
our  people  by  that  noble  and  generous  philanthropist,  the  Rev.  Charles 
Avery.  That  institution  is  doing  her  part  in  illuminating  our  minds,  and 
preparing  the  rising  generation  for  extensive  usefulness.  We  commend 
all  these  to  the  liberal  patronage  of  our  people. 

It  is  a  cheering  fact  that  colleges  accessible  to  colored  youth  are  multi- 
plying in  every  state  north  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  except  Pennsyl- 
vania and  Indiana.  These  are  still  "  bending  the  knee  to  the  dark  spirit  of 
slavery,"  and  will  doubtless  maintain  this  mean  attitude  till  a  progressive 
public  sentiment  compels  them  to  change  it. 

The  property  owned  by  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference  of  one  hundred 
and  seventy-two  acres,  has  erected  on  it  a  small  building  for  school  pur- 
poses. During  its  last  term  there  were  but  seven  children  in  it.  The 
Annual  Conference  has  done  nothing  for  its  support  for  the  last  two  years; 
hence  it  is  in  a  very  feeble  condition,  and  greatly  embarrassed  for  want  of 
pecuniary  support.  The  Rev.  Edward  Davis  is  the  principal.  What  can 
be  done  to  give  it  respectability  and  to  command  the  pnblic  confidence? 

The  lands  owned  by  our  Church  in  Canada  are  still  unimproved  (so 
far  as  we  know)  by  the  erection  of  any  buildings  for  the  education  of  the 
rising  generation.  Three  agents  have  been  employed  to  collect  funds  for 
the  purpose  of  founding  schools  of  a  high  order  on  the  said  lands,  but  not 
one  of  them  has  been  of  any  profit.  It  is  for  you  to  inquire  into  and  de- 
termine the  cause  of  these  repeated  failures. 

The  High  School  in  Philadelphia  furnishes  excellent  facilities  for  the 
education  of  the  young.  We  regret  to  hear  that  Professor  Reason  has  left 
it,  as  his  abilities  as  a  teacher  are  of  the  highest  order ;  but  we  hope  that  his 
successor  will  be  found  equal  to  the  task  of  educating  the  numerous  chil- 
dren and  youth  of  that  great  city. 

The  Cincinnati  Annual  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
is  about  to  present  a  noble  offering  of  Christian  charity  to  the  colored 
people  of  the  country,  but  with  no  intention  of  excluding  any  one  on 
account  of  color.  Their  agent,  the  Rev.  John  F.  Wright,  visited  the  last 
annual  meeting  of  the  Ohio  Conference.  He  will  be  present  at  this  Gen- 
eral Conference  to  lay  before  you  the  proposition  of  the  respectable  and 

Shares  could  be  bought  for  $25.  The  actual  ownership  was  vested  in 
the  shareholders,  who  were  entitled  to  one  vote  for  every  share  held  by 
each,  in  the  election  of  trustees  and  other  officers,  and  in  the  transaction 
of  all  business  at  the  annual  meeting. 


General  Conference  of  185(>. 


:;:;i 


influential  body  which  he  represents.  We  trust  that  you  will  receive  and 
hear  him  in  the  same  spirit  of  Christian  regard  and  courtesy  that  made  his 
visit  to  the  Ohio  Conference  so  pleasant  and  gracious. 

Canada,  that  genuine  asylum  of  the  oppressed,  is  also  doing  much  for 
the  education  and  future  elevation  of  our  people.  The  government  has 
made  ample  provision  for  the  education  of  the  young  without  regard  to 
the  color  of  the  skin  or  the  texture  of  the  hair.  From  the  common  school 
to  the  university,  the  colored  youth  has  ready  access.  The  only  excep- 
tions are  at  St.  Catherine's,  Chatham,  and  a  few  other  villages,  where  the 
folly,  ignorance  and  prejudice  of  the  colored  people  themselves  created 
them.  One  of  the  Bishops  has  recent!)'  visited  some  of  the  best  schools 
in  the  Province,  including  that  of  Mr.  King  at  Buxton,  the  Normal  School 
at  Toronto,  and  the  Lancasterian  at  London.  Therefore  we  speak  that 
which  we  know  when  we  say,  that  while  the  literary  machinery  of  the 
Canadian  schools  are  of  the  best  kind,  the  moral  and  Christian  teachings 
cannot  be  excelled.  This  remark  is  specially  true  of  the  school  under  the 
supervision  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Dillon.  Truly,  no  one  of  unprejudiced  mind 
can  visit  these  schools  without  thanking  God  for  their  existence,  and  say- 
ing of  every  colored  man  whose  home  is  in  Canada,  "The  lines  are  fallen 
unto  him  in  pleasant  places;"  yea,  he  has  "a  goodly  heritage." 

The  financial  system  of  our  Connection  is  greatly  in  need  of  improve- 
ment. It  lacks  ease  in  its  play,  as  well  as  accuracy  and  promptness  in  its 
execution.  It  bears  the  same  relation  to  our  movements  that  steam  does 
to  the  locomotive;   Cannot  something  be  done  to  give  it  vigor  and  effect? 

The  book  concern  is  in  need  of  a  patient,  careful  and  rigid  investiga- 
tion. Its  improvement  must  be  radical.  Unless  this  be  done  we  had  bet- 
ter bring  it  at  once  to  an  end,  or  it  will  bring  itself  to  a  shameful  termina- 
tion. It  is  true,  and  we  feel  proud  to  declare  it,  that  during  the  last  four 
years  the  editorial  chair  has  been  filled  with  a  great  deal  of  tact  and  lit- 
erary ability;  also  that  the  book  committee  has  proceeded  with  a  caution 
and  judgment  in  contracting  debts  and  meeting  their  obligations  unknown 
in  the  history  of  the  concern  for  the  last  twelve  years;  yet  it  has  not  at- 
tained that  position  of  prosperity  and  permanency  which  we  all  desire. 
This  is  made  evident  by  the  fact  that  in  four  years  we  have  succeeded  in 
publishing  but  thirty-nine  numbers  of  our  church  paper!  Whatever  suc- 
cess has  attended  the  sale  of  books,  with  the  credit  and  debit  account  of 
the  concern,  will  be  made  known  in  the  report  of  the  gpneral  book  steward. 
The  experience  of  forty  years  should  convince  every  wise  man  among  us 
that  something  must  be  done,  and  that  speedily,  if  indeed  we  wish  to 
make  the  concern  prosperous,  permanent  and  adapted  to  accomplish  its 
design  in  the  publication  and  diffusion  of  useful  knowledge  among  our 
hapless  people.  To  this  end  we  suggest  the  raising  of  a  capital — say  from 
ten  to  one  hundred  thousand  dollars.  This  will  enable  us  to  put  into  the 
establishment  an  able  corps  of  editors,  and  secure  such  a  number  of  lit- 
erary correspondents  as  will  give  to  our  paper  and  contemplated  magazine 
that  elevated  character  which  will  command  the  respect  and  secure  the 
patronage  of  an  enlightened  public. 


332 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church'. 


The  cause  of  missions  demands  our  serious  and  careful  consideration. 
But  whether  we  are  able  to  cultivate  the  foreign  as  well  as  the  home  field 
is  a  grave  and  important  question.  Some  think  we  ought  to  cultivate  both. 
One  thing,  however,  is  certain,  for  it  is  a  fact  of  history  that  we  have  made 
two  attempts  to  occupy  foreign  fields,  but  have  never  maintained  ourselves 
in  them.  More  than  thirty  years  ago,  in  Africa  and  Hayti,  we  unfurled 
the  blood-stained  banner  of  the  cross.  Did  many  rally  beneath  it?  If  so, 
where  are  they  now  ?  If  there  were  fruits  to  the  labors  of  those  venerable 
pioneers,  one  of  whom  now  sits  in  our  midst,  whose  gray  hairs  are  now 
an  ornament  to  this  imposing  assembly,  where  are  those  fruits?  Do  oth- 
ers enjoy  them  ?  Then  the  cause  is  a  subject  that  challenges  the  inquiry 
of  your  august  body.  Twelve  years  ago  we  established  a  parent  missionary 
society,  and  formed  several  auxiliaries  to  collect  funds  for  missionary  pur- 
poses, but  their  existence  was  like  the  flying  cloud.  O,  that  the  Head  of 
the  Church  would  awaken  in  our  hearts  a  deep,  lively  and  abiding  interest 
in  the  cause  of  missions! 

Oneness  of  administration  is  a  great  desideratum  among  us.  But  how  to 
realize  it  no  one  lias  yet  been  able  to  tell,  and  it  is  certain  we  never  will  be 
able  to  accomplish  so  desirable  an  end  until  some  standard  shall  have  been 
adopted  to  aid  us  in  this  good  purpose,  as  that  of  Bishop  Baker.  It  is  the 
best  which  we  have  seen  on  Methodist  Discipline,  and  although  there  are 
many  points  in  it  which  are  not  applicable  to  our  economy,  yet  it  is  equally 
true  that  there  are  many  which  exactly  touch  us,  and  upon  these  points 
better  counsel  cannot  be  given  than  what  is  furnished -in  his  excellent 
manual. 

To  this  end,  we  also  cite  your  attention  to  page  64,  section  5,  and  last 
exception,  five  lines  from  the  bottom;  also  page  65,  answer  to  question 
first;  to  page  70,  section  4,  in  relation  to  the  suspension  of  preachers  by 
the  Bishop  in  the  interval  of 'the  Annual  Conference  ;  to  page  71,  section  5, 
"  What  is  meant  by  Conference  applying  the  law?"  also  to  pp.  92-93, 
"  There  should  be  some  provisions  made  for  arresting  the  character  of  trav- 
eling preachers  who  may  do  wrong,  or  be  tearing  the  churches  to  pieces  by 
bad  administration."  An  unequivocal  law  should  be  created  for  the  trial 
and  exclusion  of  any  member  of  the  Annual  Conference  who  might  be 
guilty  of  misdemeanor  during  its  session. 

The  chapter  on  boundaries  needs  correction  ;  and  also  section  10,  p.  241, 
on  raising  a  fund  for  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel. 

The  whole  section  touching  the  book  concern  needs  to  be  remodeled 
and  abridged.  Moreover,  there  should  be  such  an  equal  distribution  of 
power  that  the  ends  both  of  mercy  and  justice  cannot  be  defeated,  nor 
the  chief  officers  compelled  to  stand  powerless  and  see  a  church  rent 
asunder. 

It  is  also  recommended  that  a  section  be  created  to  govern  the  case  of 
traveling  preachers  who  may  be  in  debt,  and  will  not  put  forth  the  proper 
efforts  to  meet  their  obligations.  Lastly,  we  recommend  such  an  arrange- 
ment of  the  chapters  and  sections  of  the  Discipline  that  the  items  naturally 
belonging  to  one  may  not  be  scattered  over  the  surface  of  another;  but 


General  Conference  of  1856. 


each  subject,  as  well  as  each  item  of  it,  be  put  iu  its  proper  place;  that  the 
top  of  the  margins  be  headed  with  captions  indicating  the  contents  of  each 
page;  that  the  forms  of  trial  he  made  to  accord  with  the  general  rules  or 
constitution  of  the  Church,  and  each  made  to  express  just  what  it  means, 
and  nothing  else. 

In  conclusion,  dear  brethren,  permit  us  to  exhort  you  to  that  holiness 
of  heart  and  life,  without  which  no  man  can  see  God,  and  no  one  of 
us  can  be  made  a  real,  lasting  blessing  to  the  Church  over  which  the 
Holy  Ghost  hath  made  us  overseers;  without  which  a  preacher  is  per- 
petually contradicting  his  teachings  by  untoward  example  and  scandaliz- 
ing the  Great  Redeemer's  name.  O,  for  that  holiness  which  is  always 
soaring  towards  heaven  !  0,  for  the  mind  which  was  in  Christ !  This  will 
give  every  one  of  us  power  to  trample  the  world  under  our  feet,  keeping 
us  not  only  from  evil,  but  from  its  very  appearance,  and  make  us  to  walk 
so  circumspectly  that  our  character  shall  be  like  Cesar's  wife,  not  only 
pure,  but  unsuspected.  This  is  the  power  which,  while  it  causes  us  to 
stand  in  the  Church  militant,  will  also  plant  us  in  the  Church  triumphant. 
And  now,  being  assembled  in  the  General  Conference,  it  is  desirable  that 
all  things  be  considered  on  these  occasions  as  in  the  immediate  presence  of 
God;  that  every  person  speak  freely  whatever  is  in  his  heart,  to  the  end 
that  our  condition  may  be  improved,  a  greater  number  of  souls  saved,  and 
the  Triune  God  forever  glorified.    Yours  in  the  Gospel, 

William  Paul  Quinn, 
"Willis  Nazkey, 
Daniel  A.  Payne. 

The  report  of  the  general  book  .steward  and  editor  shows  that 
at  the  time  it  was  presented  the  stock  of  the  concern  and  its 
claims  npon  others  gave  its  total  value,,  if  these  last  were  met,  as 
$768.40,  the  stock  being  deemed  worth  $500.00.  The  analysis  of 
the  report  of  the  chief  officer  of  our  financial  and  publishing 
department,  J.  P.  Campbell,  exhibits  several  facts: 

First.  That  the  book  committee  had  obtained  an  act  of  incor- 
poration from  the  Pennsylvania  Legislature. 

Second.  That  the  stereotyped  plates,  which  were  introduced 
in  the  days  and  service  of  Rev.  G.  Hogarth,  the  deceased  book 
steward  and  editor,  had  been  repaired  and  rendered  capable  of 
clear  and  distinct  printing. 

Third.  That  in  two  entire  years  they  had  been  able  to  publish 
only  nineteen  numbers  of  the  Christian  Recorder. 

Fourth.  That  they  were  free  from  debts  to  their  printer. 

The  following  propositions  are  also  presented: 

First.  That  the  office  of  general  book  steward  and  that  of 
editor  be  invested  in  the  person  of  one  individual. 

Second.  That  the  office  of  general  traveling  agent  be  abolished, 


334 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


and  colporteurs  he  substituted  for  it — this  power  to  substitute  to 
be  invested  in  the  book  committee. 

Third.  That  both  to  put  them  in  and  to  put  them  out  of  office 
be  "at  the  option  of  the  committee." 

For  these  proposed  changes  in  and  management  of  the  book 
concern  they  assigned  the  following  reasons: 

"  We  have  reported  against  the  existence  of  these  general 
officers  for  three  reasons,  viz.:  First,  because  under  the  present 
embarrassed  state  of  the  concern  they  cannot  be  supported ;  sec- 
ondly, because  they  are  not  immediately  wanted  to.  carry  on  the 
working  operations  of  the  concern;  thirdly,  because  it  would  be 
productive  of  more  good  to  the  concern  to  place  all  the  agents  of 
it  under  the  immediate  control  of  the  book  committee  or  trustees 
of  the  book  concern." 

It  is  a  painful  and  mortifying  fact  to  tell  posterity  that  such 
little  support  was  given  to  the  publishing  department  of  the 
Church  from  1852  to  1856— a  period  of  four  years— that  instead 
of  pouring  forth  from  the  press  two  hundred  and  eight  numbers 
of  our  Church  paper,  there  were  issued  only  thirty-nine — that  is  to 
say,  in  every  fifty-two  weeks  less  than  ten  numbers !  It  could  not 
have  been  from  want  of  ability  on  the  part  of  its  editors,  for  during 
these  four  years  there  were  two  of  our  best  educated  and  gifted 
minds  filling  the  editorial  chair.  The  first  two  years  witnessed 
the  intellectual  labors  of  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark,  who  had  been  edu- 
cated at  Jefferson  College,  Penn  ;  the  last  two,  those  of  Rev. 
Jabez  P.  Campbell,  a  man  of  fine  talents,  and  a  laborious  student, 
who  by  his  own  industry  and  application  enriched  his  own 
mind  with  many  forms  of  knowledge.  Never,  from  the  origin 
of  the  book  concern,  had  we  such  able  men  in  the  editorial 
chair.  The  office  of  traveling  agent,  too,  was  filled  for  three 
vears  of  that  time  by  Rev.  William  H.  Jones,  an  active,  intelli- 
gent man.  He  was  enterprising— more  so  than  the  whole  com- 
mittee. Of  his  own  accord,  though  for  his  own  personal  benefit, 
he  published  a  new  edition  of  the  "Life  of  Richard  Allen,"  a 
new  edition  of  Nell's  "Colored  Patriots  of  the  Revolution,  or 
Services  of  Colored  Americans  in  the  Wars  of  177G  and  1812," 
besides  thousands  of  "corn-field  ditties,,,  as  they  are  quaintly 
called.  All  things  considered,  the  causes  of  failure  must  have 
resided  in  the  book  committee,  in  the  lack  of  unity  between  it 
and  the  editor,  and  in  the  lack  of  intelligence  among  our  people. 
This  committee  did  not  contain  a  single  literary  man,  and,  hav- 


( ?<  neral  ( Conference  of  1856. 


336 


ing  no  taste  for  Literature  and  no  acquaintance  with  the  literary 
world,  the  members  were  utterly  disqualified  for  the  management 
of  the  literary  department  of  the  Church.  Then,  with  the  two 
managing  parties,  officers  and  editor,  lacking  mutual  confidence 
in  each  other's  opinion.-  and  views,  with  the  views  and  measures 
of  the  latter  often  in  advance  of  the  former,  there  could  only  be 
friction  and  failure.  Bui  the  chief  cause,  after  all.  lay  in  the 
people.  In  a  com  m  unity  of  al  »out  twenty-five  or  thirty  thousand 
persons  not  five  thousand  could  be  found  who  were  sufficiently 
educated  to  read  a  newspaper  readily  and  intelligently.  In  a 
congregation  of  more  than  fifteen  hundred  persons  not  one  hun- 
dred could  he  found  with  a  hymn-hook  in  their  hands.  Twelve 
months  after  the  issue  of  the  first  number  of  the  Christian 
Recorder  there  were  not  more  than  one  hundred  subscribers  in 
the  city  of  Philadelphia,  notwithstanding  there  were  at  that 
time  on  the  churches'  registers  about  two  thousand  two  hundred 
and  seven  souls,  and  in  that  district  alone  five  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  thirty-six  members. 

The  questions  whicn  came  up  hefore  tins  General  Conference 
for  debate  and  settlement,  outside  of  the  personal  ones  of  appeal 
cases,  were  those  relating  to  the  Canadian  separation,  slavery, 
divorce,  dress,  Bishops'  council,  Bishops'  residence;  while  educa- 
tion and  missions  came  in  for  a  share  of  the  discussions,  as  well 
as  the  Discipline  generally,  in  the  form  of  amendments  touching 
these  and  other  questions. 

The  Committee  on  the  Canadian  Separation,  consisting  of 
Revs.  John  Peck,  J.  P.  Campbell,  Dr.  Bias,  H.  J.  Young,  J.  A. 
W  arren,  A.  R.  Green  and  A.  W.  Wayman,  made  a  report  in  favor  of 
the  "request"  of  the  Canadian  Church.  This  subject  will  he  found 
given  in  detail  in  another  chapter,  both  as  to  actions  and  results. 

The  Committee  on  Slavery  were  Revs.  J.  A.  Warren,  Peter 
Gardener,  J.  A.  Shorter,  J.  R.  V.  Morgan,  H.  J.  Young,  A.  Wood- 
ford and  W.  R.  Revels,  who,  after  due  reflection  on  the  sub- 
ject, divided  into  two  parties  and  presented  two  different  reports, 
a  majority  and  a  minority  report.  The  twofold  action  of  the 
committee  produced  a  protracted  and  exciting  debate  that  occu- 
pied the  larger  portion  of  two  days.  The  two  reports  are  here 
presented.    The  majority  report  reads  thus: 

Your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of  slavery,  beg  leave 
to  report  that  they  have  had  the  subject  under  consideration,  and  would 
suggest : 


336 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


First.  That  page  124,  13th  and  14th  lines  from  the  top,  be  altered  so  as 
to  read:  "The  buying  and  selling  of  men,  women  and  children,  except 
with  an  intention  to  free  them  immediately  ;  or  if  he  or  they  do  not  im- 
mediately emancipate  them,  he  or  they  shall  be  immediately  expelled." 

Your  committee  are  of  the  opinion,  as  that  sentence  is  found  on  the 
same  list  with  a  number  of  crinn  s  named,  some  of  which  are  of  infinitely 
less  magnitude  than  that  of  buying  men,  women  and  children,  that  the 
penalty  should  graduate  with  the  nature  of  the  crime.  The  penalty  now 
annexed  to  this  many-headed  sin  in  our  Discipline  is  expulsion  :  but  not 
until  after  a  long  and  indeterminate  season  of  forbearance,  which  may 
extend  over  a  year  or  more,  giving  time  for  the  habit  of  buying  men, 
women  and  children  to  become  a  fixed  habit  and  settled  custom.  Hence 
your  committee  believe  that  if  men,  women  or  children  do  not  imme- 
diately emancipate  them,  he,  she,  or  they  ought  to  be  immediately  ex- 
pelled from  the  church,  and  not  suffer  a  habit  of  slaveholding  to  grow 
either  upon  the  church  or  the  individual. 

Second.  Your  committee  thinks  that  the  Discipline,  page  136,  section  12, 
should  be  so  altered  as  to  read:  "  We  will  not  receive  any  person  into  our 
society  as  a  member  who  is  a  slaveholder,  and  any  that  are  now  members 
that  have  slaves  shall  be  expelled,  without  immediately  emancipating  the 
slave  or  slaves."  We,  your  committee,  believe  that  all  sins  need  to  be  im- 
mediately corrected  ;  and  we  also  beiieve  slaveholding,  as  practised  in  this 
country,  is  a  sin  of  the  first  magnitude,  and  should  not  for  one  moment  be 
allowed  in  the  holy  communion  of  the  Church  of  God. 

Your  committee,  not  desiring  to  enter  into  the  discussion  of  the  broad 
question  of  slavery,  will  offer  for  adoption  the  following: 

Resolved,  1st.  That  the  sin  of  slaveholding,  as  practiced  in  the  American 
churches,  is  a  sin  of  the  first  degree,  and  the  greatest  known  in  the  cata- 
logue of  crimes — the  highest  violation  of  God's  law — a  shameful  abuse  of 
God's  creatures,  shocking  to  enlightened  humanity,  and  should  unchurch, 
and  does  unchristianize  every  man  and  woman  who  is  a  slaveholder. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  composed,  as  it  is,  of  colored  per- 
sons identified  with  the  slaves  in  chains,  who  never  can  be  dissevered  from 
them  in  their  sufferings,  do  deeply  sympathize  with  them  in  their  tears  and 
blood;  and  they  shall  have  our  constant  prayers,  good  wishes  and  help  as 
far  as  it  may  be  in  our  power  to  render  them. 

Amotion  to  adopt  was  advocated  by  Dr.  Bias.  J.  A.  Warren, 
M.  T.  Newsome,  Henry  J.  Young  and  M.  M.  Clark,  and  opposed 
by  R.  M.  Johnson,  J.  P.  Campbell,  William  Moore,  R.  Robinson 
and  J.  R.  Y.  Morgan,  but  the  question  when  put  was  lost. 

The  minority  report  read  as  follows  : 

First.  That  in  our  book  of  Discipline,  under  page  124,  in  the  Kules,  we 
find  the  buying  and  selling  of  men,  women  and  children,  with  an  intent  to 
enslave  them,  expressly  forbidden.  Also,  under  page  136,  we  find  in  posi- 
tive terms  the  following :  "  We  will  not  receive  any  person  into  our  society 


General  Conference  of  L856. 


337 


as  a  member  who  is  a  slaveholder.  Any  person  now  a  member,  having 
slaves,  who  shall  refuse  to  emancipate  them  after  due  not  ice  lias  been  given 
by  the  preacher  in  charge,  shall  be  expelled."  We  are  of  the  opinion  that  in 
the  above  our  sentiments  as  a  Church  are  fully  expressed.  And  while  we 
deplore  thai  American  slavery  exists,  we  can  do  no  more  than  pray  that 
God,  in  his  providence,  may  hasten  the  day  when  equity  and  justice  shall 
be  equally  distributed  to  all  mankind,  and  insist  that  our  laws  on  thai  sub- 
ject be  rigidly  enforced.  We  furthermore  recommend  the  passage  of  the 
following  resolutions: 

Resolved,  1st.  That  we  deprecate  the  spirit)  in  any  professing  Christian 
denomination  that  would  attempt  to  excuse  its  members  from  the  sin  of 
shareholding  by  offering  as  an  apology  the  example  of  the  apostolic  chinch. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  there  is  not  the  most  distant  likeness  between  them  ; 
for  while  the  apostolic  church  in  the  then  existing  government  was  held  in 
a  similar  position  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  now  in  government,  both  apostles 
and  followers  were  deprived  from  any  protection  from  the  existing  laws, 
much  less  to  vote  in  making  or  abolishing  them,  as  we  are  now. 

Resolved,  3d.  That  while  we  have  no  voice  in  the  affairs  of  this  nation, 
we  recommend  that  both  our  preachers  and  people,  like  Israel  of  old, 
set  apart  special  days  of  fasting  and  prayer  to  Almighty  God  that  he,  in  his 
divine  providence,  may  hasten  the  day  when  all  oppression  shall  come  to 
an  end,  and  when  the  whole  earth  shall  be  filled  with  his  glory. 

Resolved,  4th.  That  while  we,  as  a  denomination,  have  no  power,  so  far 
as  political  rights  are  concerned,  but  are  groaning  under  the  yoke  and  bur- 
den of  oppressive  laws,  we  do  earnestly  recommend  the  enforcement  of  our 
law,  as  it  is,  on  slavery. 

The  record  of  the  General  Conference  then  states  that  "J.  P.  B. 
Eddy  moved  that  the  above  report  be  adopted.  It  was  opposed 
by  Messrs.  Warren,  Clark,  Bias  and  Brodie,  and  advocated  by 
Mi  ssis.  Green,  Campbell,  Eddy  and  Woolford.  The  motion  pre- 
vailed." 

In  the  long  and  heated  discussion  upon  the  subject  we  find 
the  fear  developed  that  the  minority  report  was  not  sufficiently 
radical  upon  the  subject  of  slavery;  wrhile,  on  the  other  hand,  we 
find  that  the  majority  report  was  too  much  so,  and  might  inter- 
fere with  mercy  and  justice.  The  advocates  of  the  latter  report 
referred  to  the  fact  that  a  state  of  things  similar  to  that  in  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  seemed  about  to  be  introduced 
into  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  Dr.  Bias  said  that  the  M.  E.  Church 
"  was  once  a  truly  apostolic  church,  but  she  suffered  slavery  to 
get  into  her  bosom  like  a  little  acorn;  that  acorn  has  developed 
itself — struck  its  root  deep  down  into  its  heart,  thrown  its  gigantic 
trunk  up  towards  heaven,  and  makes  almost  everybody  tremble 
22 


338 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


before  its  monstrous  aspect.7'  Another  idea  presented  in  opposi- 
tion to  any  "ultra-slavery  action,"  by  Rev.  John  Morgan,  was, 
that  the  great  object  of  the  Church  was  "to  give  religious  liberty 
to  the  down-trodden  man  of  color,"  that  "the  fathers  of  our  Con- 
nection never  designed  that  our  preachers  should  not  cross  Mason's 
and  Dixon's  line."  It  was  also  stated  in  opposition  to  the  ma- 
jority report  that  much  good  had  been  done  in  the  state  of 
Louisiana,  But  for  a  clear  view  of  the  debate  upon  the  subject, 
which  was  then  exciting  so  much  attention,  it  is  necessary  to 
give,  in  general,  the  substance  of  the  individual  remarks  as  found 
in  the  records  of  that  General  Conference  of  1856.  Rev.  Morgan 
continued:  "Though  a  thorough  anti-slavery  man,  I  will  not 
take  out  of  the  mouths  of  our  brethren  the  bread  of  life  by  any 
ultra  anti-slavery  action  in  this  assembly.  Some  are  great  anti- 
slavery  men  in  the  North,  but  not  such  in  the  South.  I  am 
acquainted  with  one  such  man,  who,  being  down  South,  and  hav- 
ing  heard  that  a  certain  slaveholder  was  in  search  of  him,  imme- 
diately jumped  into  the  cars,  and  went  Hying  over  hills  and 
vales  as  fast  as  steam  could  carry  him." 

Robert  M.  Johnson  was  opposed  to  the  ultra  ideas  of  Dr.  Bias. 
He  knew  there  were  many  colored  persons  down  South  who  had 
purchased  slaves  on  what  is  called  "conditions,"  and  these  slaves 
were  freed  just  as  soon  as  they  would  pay  back  the  purchase 
money.  He  hoped  the  majority  report  would  be  voted  into 
oblivion.  \V.  R.  Revels  said  this  report  opposed  the  spirit  of 
prayer — that  Christ  did  not  limit  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  to 
geographical  lines.  He  told  of  cases  where  persons  had  purchased 
slaves  in  the  South  with  the  intention  to  set  them  free,  and  in 
many  cases  the  contract  was  made  in  the  presence  of  a  civil 
magistrate.  He  would  not  have  a  rule  created  here  which  would 
hinder  such  acts  of  mercy. 

J.  A.  Warren  favored  the  majority  report.  He  said  we  should 
not  regard  policy,  but  always  heed  our  duty.  "  The  city  in  which 
we  are  now  deliberating,  yea,  the  whole  country,  is  looking  for  us 
to  take  high  grounds  on  this  question — we  have  nothing  to  do 
with  the  consequences."  Rev.  William  Moore  was  opposed,  and 
referred  to  the  general  rule  on  the  slavery  question,  and  said: 
••  We  need  no  more  action  on  the  subject.  The  majority  report 
cannot  speak  out  our  sentiments  any  better.  The  minority  re- 
port is  in  keeping  with  our  general  rule,  and  expresses  all  that 
need  to  be  expressed.    In  adopting  the  report  of  the  majority  we 


General  Conferena  of  L856. 


339 


have  nothing  to  gain,  bu1  much  evil  to  apprehend.  II'  tins  is  what 
you  call  abolitionism,  I  am  not  an  abolitionist.  It'  men  will  lake 
such  grounds  as  will  drive  acts  of  mercy  out  of  the  Church,  I 
have  nothing  t<>  do  with  such  abolitionists.  I  envy  not  the 
Christianity  nor  humanity  of  such  men.  They  will  cast  a  man 
out  from  the  bosom  of  tbe  church  because  he  would  buy  a,  slave 
to  sel  him  free." 

M.  T.  Newsome  said  thai  every  religious  body  was  legislating 
on  this  question,  "but  we  desire  to  slum  it.  There  is  no  differ- 
ence between  the  white  man  and  colored.  Both  will  enslave 
their  own  blood.  We  are  told  that  we  have  slaveholders  now  in 
our  Church.  If  we  do  not  stop  our  members  from  slaveholding, 
our  ministers  will  soon  become  slaveholders  also.  I  say  again, 
every  religious  body  is  speaking  out,  and  shall  we  not  do  the  same. 
Shall  avc  fear  to  speak  out?  I  say  to-day,  being  no  prophet  nor 
a  prophet's  son,  if  we  allow  our  brethren  to  deal  in  this  charit- 
able slaveholding,  in  less  than  twenty  years  we  shall  have  prac- 
tical ones." 

Elder  Robinson  rose  and  said:  "  If  you  take  any  of  these 
brethren  who  are  so  anxious  to  adopt  the  report  of  the  majority 
but  two  hundred  miles  south,  you  will  find  them  holding  their 
peace;  but  being  in  Cincinnati  we  speak  very  loudly."  He  then 
told  how  a  package  of  magazines  had  been  sent  him  while  he 
was  stationed  in  Baltimore,  and  the  postmaster  had  broken  them 
open  to  see  if  anything  obnoxious  to  the  institutions  of  the 
South  were  contained  in  them.  "  Every  colored  man  is  an  abo- 
litionist, and  slaveholders  know  it." 

J.  P.  Campbell  said,  in  substance:  "The  position  we  now 
assume  is  this:  That  we  ought  to  do  all  that  is  in  our  power  to 
put  down  human  chattelism,  but  nothing  more.  Can  we  alter 
or  change  a  single  law  in  one  of  the  slave  states?  We  cannot. 
But  in  all  these  states  we  can  keep  slavery  out  of  the  Church. 
Now,  the  question  is:  Can  we  keep  slavery  out  of  the  Church  in 
the  free  as  well  as  the  slave  states?  We  can  and  do.  The  state 
of  Louisiana  has  bowed  down  to  our  Church  by  incorporating  it 
witli  an  anti-slavery  Discipline;  therefore,  if  there  is  any  stoop- 
ing, Louisiana  has  stooped  to  the  black  man,  and  as  soon  as  she 
rescinds  her  act  of  incorporation,  we  shall  quit  the  South." 

Elder  John  Peck  said:  "The  hour  is  come  when  we  are  about 
to  repeal  the  charge  of  pro-slaveryism.  The  M.  E.  Church,  with 
a  rule  in  its  Discipline  against  slavery,  just  like  ours,  went  on 


340 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


till  it  covered  under  its  influence  and  protection  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  slaveholders.  If  our  brethren  will  trust  in  God  he 
will  protect  them." 

A.  W.  Wayman  said:  "The  statement  of  the  first  resolution 
in  the  majority  report  is  not  true  historically.  It  accuses  all  the 
American  Churches  of  practicing  the  sin  of  slavery.  There  are 
the  United  Brethren,  the  Wesleyan  Methodists  and  the  Covenant- 
ers, who  never  did  allow  the  sin  of  slavery  among  them;  and 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  never  did." 

At  this  point  M.  M.  Clark  moved  to  strike  out  the  word  "all" 
and  insert  the  word  "some,"  hut  the  speaker  held  that  "the 
whole  must  go  down."  He  continued,  saying  that  the  M.  E. 
Church  "can  and  will  do  something.  Some  of  her  leading  mem- 
bers are  in  the  civil  departments  of  the  country — some  are  gov- 
ernors, some  judges,  and  others  are  in  the  state  and  national  leg- 
islatures; but  what  can  we  do?  We  have  neither  civil  nor  polit- 
ical power:  hence,  no  civil  or  political  influence,  and,  therefore, 
the  responsibility  does  not  rest  upon  us.  But  there  are  many 
things  wanted  to  be  done  in  our  Church  which  we  can  do.  We 
want  more  vital  piety,  more  holiness,  more  intelligence,  more 
sinlessness.  These  we  can  have,  and  these  will  greatly  aid  in  lift- 
ing us  out  of  the  dust  of  degredation  and  elevating  us  to  respect- 
ability in  the  land." 

Brother  Edward  Davis  was  opposed  to  the  majority  report  on 
the  ground  of  the  good  our  Church  had  been  aide  to  do  in  the 
slave  states. 

Elder  Young  spoke  in  favor  of  its  adoption,  saying  that  our 
Discipline,  with  an  anti-slavery  rule,  had  done  no  good;  that  we 
should  speak  still  more  explicitly  and  boldly  in  the  language  of 
the  report,  and  more  good  would  be  accomplished. 

When  the  main  question  was  put,  it  was  lost  by  forty  against 
six.  The  motion  to  adopt  the  minority  report  was  then  made, 
which  led  to  further  argument.  M.  M.  Clark  opposed  it,  basing 
his  opposition  upon  the  "fact  that  it  was  based  upon  our  Disci- 
pline, and  that  was  pro-slavery."  He  illustrated  his  position  by 
supposing  himself  to  purchase  a  slave,  requiring  her  to  pay  back 
the  purchase  money.  Before  this  is  done  she  marries  and  has 
children,  who  by  law  become  his  slaves  as  well;  he  dies  insol- 
vent, and  all  are  sold  for  debt;  and  he  asked:  "Am  I  not  guilty 
of  the  sin  of  slaveholding? "  He  then  continued:  "Mr.  Presi- 
dent, we  have  slaveholders  in  our  Church;  colored  slaveholders 


General  Conference  of  1856. 


in  the  very  state  of  Ohio!  Not  fifty  miles  from  this  city  (Cin- 
cinnati), where  I  labored  some  years  ago,  I  found  a  woman,  a 
member  of  the  church  under  my  care.  That  woman  was  then 
holding  slaves  in  the  South.  J  notified  her  of  «her  duty  to  eman- 
cipate her  slaves  according  to  the  requisition  of  our  Discipline. 
She  required  the  'due  notice,1  or  time  allowed  by  the  Discipline, 
during  which  time  she  went  South  and  sold  her  slaves  for  the 
sum  of  $3,000,  and  returning,  showed  me  the  check  on  a  North- 
ern hank  for  the  said  amount  of  money.  1  knew  another  per- 
son, a  man,  also  a  member  of  our  Church.  He  held  slaves  in 
the  South,  and  when  I  gave  him  the  'due  notice'  of  the  Disci- 
pline, he  acted  as  the  slaveholding  woman  did,  and  is  now  living 
upon  the  avails  of  t  wenty-one  slaves.  He  still  retains  his  stand- 
ing as  a  member  of  our  Church." 

E.  Weaver  argued  at  length  to  show  that  it  was  not  expedient 
to  change  the  rule,  and  showed  that  M.  M.  Clark  had  misrepre- 
sented the  Discipline.  He  (Weaver)  also  read  the  Discipline 
touching  the  point  at  issue,  showed  its  spirit  and  meaning,  then 
ridiculed  adducing  cases  that  occurred  fourteen  years  before, 
asking  why  the  things  of  the  present  were  not  brought  forward, 
and  why  these  slaveholding  cases  were  not  brought  to  light  years 
ago.  Weaver  closed  his  remarks  by  giving  a  concise  view  of  the 
history  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  as  it  relates  to  slavery,  and 
showed  its  condition  in  the  regions  of  New  Orleans.  , 

A.  Woodfork  thought  that  M.  M.  Clark  laid  too  much  stress 
upon  the  phrase  "  due  time,"  and  that  he  had  done  wrong  in  not 
expelling  the  slaveholders  immediately.  Said  he :  "I  have 
spoken  to  slaveholders  as  boldly  as  man  ever  did.  I  have  done  my 
duty  on  this  question,  and  God  has  both  protected  and  blessed 
me  in  my  efforts."  He  then  related  an  anecdote  showing  the 
ignorance  of  a  certain  slaveholder. 

M.  T.  Newsome  said  that  the  speech  of  A.  Woodfork  reminded 
him  of  a  certain  preacher  who  took  his  text  from  the  40th  chapter 
of  "  Generations  "  and  ended  his  sermon  with  the  last  of  "  Evel- 
ation."  He  declared  that  if  there  be  one  man  or  woman  in  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  holding  slaves,  we  cannot  be  an  anti-slavery 
Church. 

A.  R.  Green  read  the  first  resolution  of  the  minority  report, 
and  defended  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  from  the  charge  of  slavehold- 
ing. He  arraigned  M.  M.  Clark  for  not  doing  his  duty  if  he  had 
not  expelled  such  slaveholders;  and  as  he  claimed  he  had,  he 


342 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


questioned  as  to  bow  they  could  now  be  slaveholders,  having 
sold  their  slaves,  and  how  could  they  be  still  living  in  the  bosom 
of  the  Church.  He  claimed  that  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  was  thus 
misrepresented.  He  emphatically  disclaimed  the  charge  of  its 
having  a  pro-slavery  Discipline,  saying:  "But  the  '  due  notice ' 
required  by  the  Discipline  means  nothing  more  than  five  or  six 
days  at  least — time  enough  for  the  slaveholder  to  take  the  neces- 
sary measures  for  emancipation.  Therefore,  Brother  ( 'lark  misin- 
terprets the  Discipline  when  be  tells  us  that  it  is  a  pro-slavery 
Discipline.  The  General  Conference  is  called  upon  to  set  itself 
right.  She  has  been  branded  by  some  of  her  ministers  as  being 
pro-slavery.  This  is  false;  therefore,  ibis  Conference  must  set 
itself  right.  She  is  pure.  She  is  free  from  the  sin  charged  upon 
her.  Look,  also,  if  you  please,  upon  the  helpless  condition  of 
our  Church  in  the  South.  Poor,  ignorant,  without  civil  or  polit- 
ical influence,  without  friends,  fettered  by  the  very  laws  that 
ought  to  have  been  made  for  her  protection,  what  can  she  do  to 
help  herself?  She  is  in  the  same  condition  as  the  apostolic 
church. 

(\.  Broadie  said  we  ought  to  discuss  the  question  coolly  and 
deliberately.  The  color  of  a  man's  skin  does  not  change  his  dis- 
position to  apologize  for  slavery.  lie  would  ask  the  question, 
What  evidence  have  we  this  day  that  our  Church  is  not  pro- 
slavery?  It  has  been  affirmed  on  the  floor  that  there  are  slave- 
holders in  our  Church,  and  be  believes  it.  As  long  as  we  have 
slavebolding  churches  banging  on  to  the  Connection,  so  long 
will  we  be  bowing  down  to  the  spirit  of  slavery.  He  thanked 
God  that  be  "lives  on  free  soil,  and  will,  therefore,  speak  out 
against  the  monster  slavery.  This  very  thing  will  tear  our 
churches  to  pieces." 

At  this  point  in  the  debate  several  brethren  endeavored  to  ob- 
tain the  floor.  W.  11.  Revels  was  successful,  lie  said  that 
Brother  M.  M.  Clark  deserved  to  be  impeached  for  tolerating 
shivery  in  the  church  under  his  pastoral  care  in  the  state  of  Ohio. 
He  then  clearly  showed  that  our  Church  was  anti-slavery.  He 
wished  to  know  if  the  written  rule  in  our  Discipline  was  a  truth  or 
a  falsehood?  It  bad  always  prohibited  slavebolding;  it  had 
done  so  ever  since  the  formation  of  our  Connection  in  1816;  it 
had  never  changed  itself  to  suit  white  men  or  black  men  in  the 
far  south  nor  the  far  north  ;  it  had  always  excluded  slaveholders, 
and  "  we  demand  from  these  brethren  whether  this  rule,  written, 


( r<  m  red  ( 'onference  of  1 866. 


printed  and  published  to  the  four  winds  of*  heaven,  is  a  Lie?  If 
it  be,  why  have  they  not  proven  this  before?  Why  do  they  not 
prove  it  now?  He  who  contends  that  our  Church  is  pro-slavery, 
with  this  law  in  his  hands,  has  to  contend  with  the  fearfu]  odds 
of  ten  to  one!  They  are  joining  the  company  of  those  who  are 
the  worst  enemies  and  slanderers  of  our  Church  at  the  time 
they  ought  to  l>c  engaged  in  her  defense.  If  these  brethren 
arc  BO  heroic,  so  brave,  so  valiant  for  the  truth,  why  do  they  not 
go  down  South  and  fight  the  enemy  on  their  own  ground?  Nay! 
They  stand  at  a  distance,  where  the  enemy  can  neither  see  nor 
reach  them,  to  discharge  their  rifles  and  field-pieces;  this  is 
cowardly.  Hut  what  is  the  position  of  the  brethren  who  are 
required  to  labor  in  the  South?  They  are  like  a  man  in  the 
wilderness  surrounded  by  hornets.  Tbey  are  without  a  voice  in 
the  Church  general  or  in  the  state.  Tbey  are  without  arms  and 
without  the  protection  of  those  who  have  the  power  to  protect. 
They  are  gagged  and  fettered  beneath  the  iron  heels  of  the  pow- 
ers that  be — powerless  themselves,  they  are  down-trodden  by 
power,  and  yet  these  brave  brethren  who  stand  beyond  sight  and 
hearing  of  the  enemy  demand  that  they  shall  do  what  no  man 
living  under  the  circumstances  can  perform." 

Elder  Robinson  again  obtained  the  floor,  and  appealed  to  the 
historical  fact  that  our  Church  had  occupied  an  anti-slavery  posi- 
tion from  the  very  beginning  until  now.  These  brethren,  who 
are  so  noisy  and  clamorous,  joined  the  Church  with  this  rule  star- 
ing them  in  the  face  and  looking  them  in  the  eyes  ever  since. 
Yet,  notwithstanding,  they  here  to-day  unblushingly  tell  us  that 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  is  pro-slavery.  As  well  might  they  under- 
take to  demonstrate  the  absurd  proposition  that  black  is  white 
and  darkness  light.  At  the  close  of  his  speech,  and  after  he  had 
stated  that  the  young  men  made  these  speeches  to  show  how  well 
they  could  speak,  and  that  they  knew  better,  he  moved  the  pre- 
vious question. 

This  threw  the  house  into  great  excitement,  when  one  of  the 
Bishops  obtained  the  attention  of  the  house,  and  begged  the 
brethren  to  allow  the  greatest  liberty,  if  by  so  doing  this  discus- 
sion should  occupy  forty-eight  hours  more,  because  it  would 
accomplish  more  for  the  cause  of  freedom,  the  cause  of  truth, 
and  the  cause  of  God. 

Pending  this  question,  adjournment  took  place  until  afternoon, 
when  the  discussion  was  resumed. 


344 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Dr.  Bias  rose  to  defend  himself,  as  he  stated,  "against  the  im- 
putations which  were  thrown  out  against  him  on  yesterday." 
He  wanted  the  Conference  to  notice  some  things,  and  he  proceeded 
to  make  some  severe  retorts  upon  the  other  speakers,  claiming 
that  all  the  "four  aspirants  to  the  episcopal  office  were  agreed  on 
this  question."  He  quoted  Bishop  Payne's  definition  of  slavery, 
given  as  far  back  as  1838,  in  an  address  delivered  before  the 
Franklin  Synod  of  the  Lutheran  ( !hurch,  "  Slavery  is  the  assump- 
tion that  it  is  right  for  one  man  to  hold  property  in  another," 
and  that  "he  who  enslaves  a  fellow  man  sins  as  much  against 
God  as  though  he  had  enslaved  an  angel."  "This,"  s.aid  Dr. 
Bias,  "is  the  daring,  impious,  heaven-insulting  system  we  are 
called  upon  to  oppose  and  legislate  against.  Revels  has  made 
out  our  ease  clearly;  he  has  told  us  that  slaveholders  gave  eight 
hundred  feet  of  lumber  to  build  one  of  our  southern  churches; 
those  eight  hundred  feet  are  the  fruit  of  the  slave's  labor,  and 
does  not  every  one  know  that  it  is  also  the  blood  of  the  slave? 
To  this  very  thing,  so  infamous  and  shameful,  Brother  Green  is 
shouting,  'Glory! ' "  The  doctor  also  alluded  to  the  fact  that  ever 
since  that  time  when  Louisiana  was  a  slave  territory  under  the 
French  crown,  she  was  a  comparatively  mild  slaveholding  state; 
so  to  quote  her  example  was  but  to  throw  dust  in  our  eyes.  Her 
governors,  judges,  and  other  officials,  he  said,  have  generally  had 
colored  wives,  so  that  their  sympathies  have  generally  been  on 
the  side  of  the  colored  man,  and  this  fact  also  accounted  for  the 
phenomenon  that  there  was  more  commercial  and  mechanical 
enterprise  among  the  few  colored  people  of  Louisiana  than  in 
any  other  state  in  the  Union. 

Brother  Green  rose  to  set  the  doctor  right.  He  again  read 
from  the  report  of  the  committee,  and  declared  himself  prepared 
to  show,  as  he  had  already  done,  that  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  was 
free  from  the  sin  of  slavery.  He  also  read  the  disciplinary  rule  on 
-la  very,  and  showed  that  in  establishing  our  Church  in  a  new  coun- 
4  try  we  could  not  tell  who  were  slaveholders  till  after  they  had 
got  in — after  which  the  rule  is  to  he  made  known  to  them,  and 
if  they  did  not  repent  by  emancipating  their  slaves,  they  are  to 
be  expelled.  "If  the  preachers  having  charge  of  churches  in 
slaveholding  states  will  not  execute  the  Laws,  the  fault  is  theirs, 
and  not  that  of  the  Church.  Where  is  the  conscience  of  the 
preacher,  with  this  rule  in  his  hand,  that  Iocs  not  exclude  a 
slaveholder?    To  charge  the  Church  with  the  sin  of  slavery 


<  ;<  neral  ( Conference  of  1 856. 


345 


under  such  circumstances  is  bo  charge  God  with  the  sin  of  A.dam, 
who  did  previously  transgress  in  the  very  face  of  the  law  which 
forbade  him  to  eal  the  forbidden  fruit.  The  Church  is  free  from 
this  accursed  sin — standing  forth  as  a  beacon  Light,  and  as  glo- 
rious as  the  unclouded  sun  ! " 

The  speaker  had  waxed  eloquent,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  done, 
from  every  side  of  the  house  was  heard  the  cry  of  "Give  us  the 
question — the  question!  the  question!"  Amidst  confusion  the 
question  was  put  and  sustained  by  a  vote  of  forty  in  the  affirm- 
tive  and  twelve  in  the  negative. 

Thus  ended  the  debate  on  slavery  in  the  Genera]  Conference 
of  1866. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


GENERAL  CONFERENCE  OF  1856— CONTINUED. 

The  Divorce  Question — Points  Involved— Proposed  Amendment  Postponed 
— Lengthy  Debate  on  Dress — Limitation  of  Bishops'  Power  Proposed — 
Bishops'  Residences — Synopsis  of  Important  Points — The  Proposition 
from  the  M.  E.  Church  Concerning  Education  Rejected — How  a  Bishop 
.Shall  be  Constituted  —On  Maladministration — The  Bishops  to  Itinerate — 
Their  Salary — A  New  Episcopal  Seal. 

rTAHE  divorce  question  also  came  up  for  discussion.    The  rule 
J[     of  the  Discipline,  as  found  in  section  28,  page  139,  from 
1848  to  1852,  touching  this  subject,  says: 

If  any  minister,  preacher,  exhorter,  or  member  of  our  Society,  who  has 
been  married,  and  shall  separate  and  marry  again  while  the  former  com- 
panion is  living,  he  or  she  shall  be  expelled,  and  shall  never  be  admitted 
during  the  life-time  of  the  parties.  And  any  minister  who  shall  maYry 
such  knowingly,  shall  forfeit  his  standing  in  the  Connection. 

But  at  the  General  Conference  of  1852,  by  motion  of  Rev.  R. 
V.  Morgan,  this  rule  was  so  altered  as  to  allow  any  one  of  our 
members  to  marry  after  di  voice,  if  he  or  she  had  obtained  a  legal 
divorce,  provided  that  divorce  had  been  based  on  the  criminal 
action  alluded  to  by  our  Saviour  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 
This  amendment,  however,  was  not  published  in  the  revised 
Discipline  of  1852;  therefore,  Dr.  J.  J.  G.  Bias  moved  "That 
section  28  he  amended  on  page  138,  by  striking  out  question  fourth, 
with  its  answer,  and  inserting  the  rule  adopted  by  the  last  Gen- 
eral Conference. 

There  was  then  a  movement  to  postpone  indefinitely  the  con- 
sideration of  this  motion. 

A  discussion  then  took  place  as  to  the  questions  involved  in 
the  settlement  of  the  matter.  Rev.  M.  M.  Clark  asked  "  whether 
the  divorce  does  absolve  all  connection  with  and  obligations  to 
the  woman  ?  If  in  the  affirmative,  can  the  man  remain  in  full 
standing?  These  are  the  points  to  be  settled,  and  therefore  must 
be  discussed."  lie  hoped  the  motion  for  indefinite  postpone- 
ment would  not  prevail. 

Rev.  John  Peck  said:  "If  a  divorced  woman  is  an  adulteress, 
so,  also,  a  divorced  man  must  be  an  adulterer,  and  had  no  more 
(  346  ) 


General  Conference  of  1856-  Continued. 


B47 


righl  to  remain  a  member  of  the  Christian  Church  than  the 
woman." 

Rev.  C.  Woodyard  said  thai  he  wanted  to  know  w  ho  was  the 
author  of  matrimony.  He  answered  it  himself  by  Baying:  u  Why, 
God.  God  created  but  one  man  and  one  woman.  Thus  he  in- 
dicated his  will  concerning  marriage.  Thus  he  has  shown  that 
it  is  right  lorn  man  to  have  hut  one  wife.  Shall  a  man  leave  his 
w  ile  and  marry  another?  Cod  never  gave  a  man  the  right  to 
divorce  his  wile.  In  reading  the  Letters  of  Paul  you  will  see 
that  no  license  was  given  to  divorce.'1  He  quoted  I.  Corinthians, 
7th  chapter,  11th  verse,  and  dwelt  upon  it  with  great  emphasis, 
and  closed  with,  "  I  say  with  the  apostle,  'Let.  not  the  husband 
put  away  his  wife.'    I  go  for  indefinite  postponement." 

J.  P.  Campbell  said:  "This  is  a  serious,  solemn  question,  and 
so  am  1  disposed  to  treat  it.  lias  our  Heavenly  Father  given 
such  a  right  to  any  man?  This  day  let  us  take  the  highest  pos- 
sible ground  in  Christian  morals.  Our  fathers  took  this  high 
ground,  in  times,  too,  when  the  circumstances  of  our  people 
were  more  involved  than  at  present.  Shall  we,  their  sons,  with 
our  boasted  increase  of  intelligence,  lower  the  standard?  Shall 
we  come  down,  or  shall  we  stand  upon  the  same  lofty  platform, 
and  ultimately  shine  as  the  stars  in  the  firmament?  The  rule 
as  we  now  have  it  is  right.  Therefore,  let  the  proposition  be 
postponed  now  and  eternally.  We  want  time  to  think  on  this 
question — yes,  we  want  years — Ave  are  not  disposed  to  tear  down 
the  pure  and  bright  temple  which  our  fathers  have  erected.  We 
want  time  to  think  on  so  grave  a  question,  and  therefore  we  want 
it  indefinitely  postponed;  it  will  do  us  good  now  and  forever! 

Dr.  Bias  replied:  "I  entrench  myself  upon  the  teachings  of 
the  Saviour.  He  said  in  his  memorable  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
£i  Whosoever  shall  put  away  his  wife,  saving  for  the  cause  of  for- 
nication, causeth  her  to  commit  adultery."  Here  it  is  evident 
that  an  exception  is  made,  and  made  in  fa  vor  of  the  injured  hus- 
band. He  can  rightfully  divorce  his  adulterous  wife,  and  there- 
fore rightfully  remain  in  full  standing  in  the  church  after  a  legal 
divorce  shall  have  rightfully  been  obtained.  The  position  of 
the  brethren  on  the  opposite  side  reminds  me  of  the  Levite. 
Suppose  a  slave  brother  has  had  the  wife  of  his  bosom  torn  away 
from  him  by  the  brutal  and  libidinous  arm  of  slavery,  shall  he 
never  be  allowed  to  marry  again?  And  if  he  should,  would  we 
drive  him  out  of  the  Church  of  God?    Here  is  a  case  at  hand: 


348 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  Rev.  Dutton,  formerly  a  member  of  our  Church,  had  hie 
wife  torn  from  his  arms  and  sent  forever  from  him.  The  question 
was  considered,  and  Bishop  Allen  derided  that  it  was  right 
for  Dutton  to  marry  another  woman.  The  question  at  issue  is 
not  what  is  the  opinion  of  Brothers  Campbell,  Woodyard  and 
Peck,  but  whether  the  Bible  has  given  an  exception  in  favor  of 
an  injured  husband  or  an  injured  woman.  I  maintain  and  be- 
lieve that  the  woman  who  can  prove  her  husband  guilty  of  hav- 
ing violated  the  laws  of  chastity,  has  as  much  right  to  divorce  him, 
and  remain  in  full  standing  in  the  Christian  Church,  as  a  man 
under  similar  circumstances.  All  that  I  demand  is,  that  the 
statute  law  ordained  by  the  last  General  Conference,  and  omitted 
by  the  general  book  steward,  be  placed  in  the  Discipline.  I  re- 
gard the  brethren  who  occupy  the  opposite  side  as  hypocrites,  who 
seem  desirous  to  be  holier  than  the  Saviour  himself.  They  would, 
if  they  could,  create  a  false  standard  of  moral  purity  nowhere 
recognized  in  the  Holy  Scriptures." 

At  the  close  of  the  debate  the  motion  for  indefinite  postpone- 
ment was  put  and  carried. 

The  debate  on  dress  was  introduced  by  the  movement  that  sec- 
tion 29,  which  regulates  the  dress  of  our  members,  be  amended 
by  saying:  "  Each  and  all  of  our  Annual  Conferences  shall  faith- 
fully (  an  y  out  this  rule  at  each  session  for  the  violation  of  which 
any  minister  in  charge  may  be  suspended.  Therefore,  all  our 
preachers  shall  put  off  all  superfluity  and  costly  apparel." 

Dr.  Bias  was  opposed  to  such  an  amendment  "because  its  tend- 
ency is  only  to  hypocrisy.  The  Quakers  are  a  very  plain  people 
in  their  costume,  but  none  are  more  proud  than  they."  In  re- 
gard to  wearing  a  gold  watch  with  a  gold  chain,  what  man  shall 
hinder  him?  He  will  wear  whatever  kind  of  watch  he  likes 
best.  To  attempt  to  prohibit  him  is  despotism  in  the  extreme. 
"  Some  men's  alimentiveness  is  so  very  large  that  all  their  moneys 
are  spent  to  fill  their  bellies.  They  are  afraid  that  the  people 
will  not  give  them  money  sufficient  for  these  wants.  They  want 
to  wear  shad-belly  coats,  and  have  starched  bonnets  and  sleeves 
without  gores  for  the  women.  Were  the  craniums  of  these  breth- 
ren submitted  to  a  phrenological  examination,  it  would  be  found 
that  their  acquisitiveness  is  very  large,  and  you,  Mr.  Chairman, 
know  that  it  is  a  fact  that  the  men  who  wear  straight  coats  give 
you  the  most  trouble — other  men  give  you  the  least." 

Elder  Robinson  admitted  the  right  of  every  one  to  dress  as  he 


General  Conference  of  1856* — Continual. 


349 


pleases,  bul  it  should  be  in  uniformity  with  the  usage  of  the 
Church  and  the  requirements  of  the  Discipline.  "  [f  the  women 
have  sleeves  as  Large  as  bags,  and  gowns  with  no  pleats  in  them, 
it  is  nothing  to  us.  Some  of  our  preachers  upbraid  the  people 
for  wearing  rings  and  cost Ly  apparel,  whilst  they  themselves  wear 
gold  watches  in  their  pockets."  He  was  opposed  to  such  incon- 
sistency, and  desired  to  see  uniformity  as  much  among  the  min- 
istry as  among  the  Laity. 

A.  Iv.  Green  said  that  uniformity  was  all  that  was  demanded — 
the  fault  was  in  the  preachers.  When  they  took  their  minis- 
terial vows  they  pledged  to  keep  all  the  rules,  not  for  wrath,  hut 
for  conscience's  sake.  Later  he  said  that  he  was  with  the  doctor- 
in  regard  to  eating,  and  added,  "Our  hacks  and  stomachs  are 
robbing  us  of  much  money,  so  that  we  are  unahle  to  acquire 
property.  This  is  also  one  reason  why  our  periodicals  are  not 
sustained,  and  also  why  our  children  are  not  well  educated.  Our 
people  are  now  wearing  gold  watches  at  a  cost  of  from  fifty  to 
one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  while  many  of  these  very  extrav- 
agant men  have  not  so  much  as  a  log  cabin  to  cover  their  heads, 
nor  the  means  to  supply  the  most  absolute  wants  in  the  day  of 
affliction,  in  the  time  of  need.  This  extravagance  of  our  people 
is  a  curse  to  them."  He  referred  to  the  change  which  had  taken 
place  in  the  congregation  in  Cincinnati  during  the  last  nine 
months,  and  said  that  this  was  owing  to  the  want  of  uniformity 
among  the  preachers.  If  they  would  not  be  so  extravagant,  in  a 
few  years  they  would  have  their  own  houses  to  live  in.  He 
averred  that  many  of  our  preachers  on  that  Conference  floor 
were  wearing  more  costly  apparel  than  Nicholas  Longworth. 

E.  Weaver  was  opposed  to  the  amendment,  as  he  thought  there 
was  already  law  enough  to  govern  all  our  preachers  and  people 
in  this  respect.  He  claimed  that  this  amendment  conflicted 
with  the  government  of  the  Church,  and  if  the  attempt  be  made 
to  execute  it,  the  result  will  be  a  breaking  up  of  the  entire 
Church.  One  of  the  speakers  on  the  opposite  side  wears  a  long 
beard;  he  did  not  see  any  more  harm  in  wearing  an  extravagant 
coat — if  the  one  was  a  superfluity,  so  was  the  other.  "  If,  as  he 
says,  a  gold  watch  is  a  superfluity,  let  him  also  cut  off  his  long 
beard,  for  I  maintain  it  also  is  a  superfluity.  If  this  amendment 
be  passed,  we  may  execute  it  indirectly,  but  not  directly.  I  have 
a  gold  watch  in  my  pocket,  and  intend  to  w^ear  it.  It  was  earned 
by  my  own  hard  labor — my  gold  chain  is  a  present  from  friends 


350 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


outside  of  the  Church."  An  attempt  last  year  to  execute  this 
rule  upon  dress  in  the  Cincinnati  Station  brought  confusion  into 
it,  he  claimed,  and  by  ultraism  on  this  subject  did  more  harm 
than  good.  He  referred  to  a  kl  very  gay  preacher"  whom  one  of 
the  Bishops  of  the  M.  E.  Church  sent  on  a  poor  circuit — a  cir- 
cuit as  poor  as  Job's  turkey — but  when  lie  appeared  at  the  next 
Conference  he  was  the  best  dressed  man  in  the  house 

The  preacher  at  the  Cincinnati  Station  declared  that  the 
church  was  not  in  confusion,  and  that  it  had  sustained  him  in  a 
measure. 

Elder  Moore  spoke  in  support  of  the  amendment:  "The  min- 
istry ought  never  to  attempt  to  rule  the  people  if  they  will  not 
submit  themselves  to  be  ruled.  The  time  has  not  yet  come  for 
us  to  give  encouragement  to  the  present  extravagance  of  our 
people.  Who  can  contemplate  the  extravagance  of  our  people 
without  shame,  pain  and  grief?  Are  the  fathers  to  lie  set  aside 
by  these  young  men  who  dress  more  like  gamblers  than  as  min- 
isters of  Him  who  wore  a  seamless  garment?  Are  the  timbers 
to  dictate  to  the  builders?  No!  Rather  let  them  be  hewn  down 
and  made  to  fit  in  the  sacred  building.  It  is  the  duty  of  this  Con- 
ference to  dictate  to  these  young  ministers,  and  in  the  spirit  of 
economy  tell  them  what  is  made  for  their  good.  We  live  now 
in  the  most  dangerous  age  the  world  ever  saw.  Respecting  the 
happiness  of  a  man  hereafter,  that  is  another  question;  but 
when  lie  joins  a  plain  Society  like  the  Methodists,  let  him  submit 
to  its  rules."  He  was  equally  opposed  to  men  going  into  the 
pulpit  with  their  mouths  full  of  tobacco,  spitting  and  squirting 
out  the  filthy  juice  like  a  squirrel.  "It  is  a  shame!  It  is  the 
filthy  habit  of  rowdies  and  topers,  of  which  no  minister  should 
be  guilty  !  Our  young  men  must  be  made  to  submit :  our  people 
also.  No  man  is  either  a  consistent  Christian  or  minister  of 
Christ  who  will  rebel  against  government." 

Brother  Morgan  said:  "Mr.  Chairman  and  all  you  reverend 
Bishops,  please  cast  your  eyes  over  this  house,  over  this  General 
Conference,  and  survey  the  brethren  from  head  to  foot.  Do  you 
see  any  conformity  among  them?  It  has  been  said  that  our 
fathers  were  uniform.  This  statement  is  not  true.  Some  of 
them  wore  shad-belly  coats,  some  straight  ones;  some  wore  clean 
boots,  some  dirty;  some  clean  shirts,  some  dirty  ones;  some 
Avore  watches,  some  wore  none ;  some  used  gold  spectacles,  like 
one  of  the  reverend  chairmen,  others  wore  silver  ones,  while  the 


General  Conference  of  1856 — Continued. 


351 


majority  wore  none.  Coffee,  tea  and  some  other  eatables  are  per- 
nicious in  their  influences,  as  well  as  tobacco,  because  they  arc 
calculated  to  dest  roy  the  foundations  of  human  health  by  per- 
petually exciting  the  nervous  system.  Vet,  some  of  these  very 
brethren  who  are  such  great  sticklers  about  dress  are  as  extrava- 
gant in  their  use  of  these  superfluous  articles  as  others  are  in 
that  of  dress.  Superfluity  in  dress  is  a  comparatively  little  evil 
compared  with  superfluity  in  tin;  use  of  coffee,  green  tea  and 
tohacco;  for,  while  the  former  destroys  a  man's  money,  the  latter 
destroys  his  whole  body,  and  precipitates  him  into  an  untimely 
grave.  Let  us  have  uniformity  in  everything — from  the  Bishops 
down  to  the  least  of  us.  If  our  zealous  brother  will  cut  off  his 
superfluous  whiskers,  I  will  take  off  any  superfluous  article  that 
I  now  wear.  Every  man  has  the  right  to  wear  whatsoever  he 
pleases;  to  attempt  to  abridge  this  right  is  slavery.  I  say  again, 
J  go  for  uniformity  in  everything — let  us  have  it  in  prayer,  in 
preaching,  in  singing.  But  the  idea  of  uniformity  is  impracti- 
cable. Let  me  utter  my  warning  voice  to-day:  When  the  hour 
shall  come  that  this  idea  of  uniformity  shall  be  attempted,  it 
will  prove  an  utter  failure.  Let  those  who  are  such  sticklers  for 
uniformity  first  set  the  example.  The  young  men  are  charged 
with  an  attempt  to  destroy  the  Church.  I  repel  with  indigna- 
tion such  an  imputation.  We  have  no  desire  to  despise  the 
examples  of  our  fathers — we  are  willing  to  and  shall  follow  them 
in  all  vital  matters ;  but  in  things  indifferent  we  choose  to  follow 
the  dictates  of  common  sense.  Our  fathers  were  fallible  men 
like  others." 

Brother  Green  referred  to  our  Saviour's  wearing  a  beard,  which 
Dr.  Bias  met  by  the  rejoinder  that  He  also  wore  a  seamless 
garment. 

Brother  Campbell  said  the  brethren  had  given  a  wrong  con- 
struction to  the  word  "uniformity."  The  Discipline  meant 
nothing  more  than  plainness  of  dress.  So,  also,  some  had  given 
a  wrong  construction  to  that  which  says :  "Rend  your  hearts, 
but  not  your  garments."  He  thought  if  the  brethren  had  read 
their  Bibles  as  diligently  as  himself,  they  would  take  a  different 
view  of  its  teachings  on  the  subject  under  consideration.  He 
wanted  the  brethren  to  know  that  wisdom,  piety  and  intelligence 
put  that  rule  upon  dress  in  the  Discipline.  The  greatest  reform- 
ers of  modern  times  were  the  sainted  Wesley  and  his  illustrious 
coadjutors.    They  were  guided  by  wisdom,  piety  and  intelligence 


352 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


when  they  incorporated  the  said  rule  in  the  economy  of  Metho- 
dism. Therefore,  let  it  remain  in  our  Discipline  forever  unal- 
tered. It  has  thus  far  guided  us  safely  ;  it  will  guide  us  safely 
in  the  future. 

When  the  motion  was  put  to  amend,  it  was  carried  by  twenty- 
four  against  twenty-one. 

Another  interesting  debate  was  upon  the  limitation  of  the 
Bishops1  power,  or  the  Bishops'  council.  The  special  committee 
to  whom  was  referred  the  duty  of  amending  the  70th  page  of  the 
Discipline  reported  the  following: 

Your  committee  recommend  that  the  second  answer  to  question  fourth 
be  so  amended  as  to  read,  after  the  word  "  Bishop,"  page  70th,  third  line 
from  the  top  :  "  Or  each  Annual  Conference  may,  after  the  appointments 
of  the  preachers,  proceed  to  choose  three  or  five  elders  in  such  portion  of 
the  Annual  Conference  District,  so  as  to  give  the  Bishops  the  fairest  and 
fullest  understanding  of  the  circuits  and  stations  in  the  district,  and  be  the 
Bishops'  advisers  in  matters  pertaining  to  the  district,  and  the  removal  of 
preachers,  etc." 

The  discussion  was  opened,  upon  the  motion  being  made  for 
its  adoption,  by  Elder  J.  P.  Campbell,  who  arose  and  said  he  was 
opposed  to  it  because  it  created  a  set  of  "advisers  for  the  Bishops." 
It  was  nothing  more  than  an  effort  to  abridge  the  episcopal 
power,  already  limited  by  the  wholesome  provisions  of  the  Disci- 
pline. The  Bishop  could  do  nothing  without  these  "advisers," 
and  it  was  really  putting  the  appointing  power  into  their  hands. 
It  was  necessary  to  guard  against  radicalism,  of  which  this  report 
was  the  seed  that  might,  by  and  by.  grow  into  a  tree,  sending 
forth  the  fruits  of  ecclesiastical  death.  The  report  contemplated 
the  putting  of  the  Bishops  under  the  control  of  the  "advisers.*' 
"Were  I  the  Bishops,"  he  remarked  in  conclusion,  "  I  should 
feel  degraded  by  such  a  measure,  for  I  want  to  be  a  man,  and  not 
a  mere  mouse." 

Rev.  A.  R.  Green  rose  in  the  defence  of  his  report  and  favorite 
measure.  He  was  sorry  to  see  men  who  did  not  want  to  have 
counsel.  It  was  the  first  time  he  had  ever  seen  a  deliberative 
body  so  wise  that  it  did  not  want  counsel.  These  advisers,  he 
declared,  would  not  take  away  the  episcopal  power. 

Elder  Morgan  was  opposed  to  this  "  revolutionary  meas- 
ure." He  claimed  that  these  advisers  would  constitute  a  five- 
winged  angel  to  fly  through  the  Connection  and  act  as  a  perpet- 
ual spy  over  the  conduct  of  the  respective  elders,  and  report 


General  Conference  of  18J">6 — Continual. 


353 


Buch  and  such  a  brother,  "  because  dcai-  Sister  Mary  was  displeased 
with  his  administration."  "  If  we  are  to  have  these  secret  spies 
over  our  actions,"  he  said,  "tell  us  to-day  in  plain  English,  and 
you  shall  not  have  the  opportunity  of  telling  us  again.  The 
Spanish  [nquisition  is  not  more  objectionable  than  this  five- 
winged  angel.  'Tis  presiding  eldership  in  another  form.  Tis 
the  same  rabbit,  only  it  has  live  feet — the  same  coon,  only  it  has 
five  ears! " 

"The  author  of  this  measure,"  said  Rev.  H.  C.  Young,  who 
rose  to  speak  against  the  proposed  amendment,  "notified  the 
last  General  Conference  of  his  intention,  and  I  told  him  I 
would  meet  him  on  this  floor  to  present  determined  opposition 
to  it.  If  such  a  measure  is  to  carry,  I  will  now  inform  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  of  my  determination  to  dissolve  my  relations  to 
the  itinerancy.  What  possible  good  can  this  measure  realize?  I 
go  against  this  Bishops'  humbug;  for  mischief  and  destruction 
will  follow  in  its  footsteps.  Let  us  bury  it  so  deep  that  it  shall 
not  have  a  resurrection  for  twelve  years  to  come!" 

Elder  Robinson  spoke  in  favor  of  the  amendment.  He  was 
opposed  to  presiding  elders,  but  was  in  favor  of  the  Bishop's 
council.  It  would  be  nothing  more  or  less  than  this  brother  or 
that  one,  who,  being  well  informed  respecting  the  affairs  of  the 
circuit  or  station,  could  give  the  Bishop  intelligence  respecting 
the  usefulness  of  A  or  B.  They  would  surely  give  information 
without  attempting  to  control  the  episcopal  power.  It  was  well 
known  that  one  man  was  more  competent  than  another  to  in- 
form the  Bishops  respecting  the  affairs  of  any  particular  circuit 
or  station,  and  such  a  man  would  be  taken  to  help  constitute 
this  council.  He  thought  that  the  safety  of  the  Church  and  the 
advancement  of  the  cause  required  the  creation  of  these  "  ad- 
visers." 

Brother  Edward  Johnson  was  opposed  to  this  council.  His 
opinion,  based  upon  facts,  led  him  to  the  belief  that  such  a 
measure  would  destroy  the  entire  union  of  our  ministry  and 
Church.  In  his  judgment,  there  was  but  one  class  of  persons  in 
the  ministry  who  would  be  free — it  was  this  very  council. 
Everybody  else — people,  preachers  and  Bishops — would  be  en- 
slaved, and  these  counsellors  would  be  the  masters.  This  council 
would  bring  the  preachers  to  an  account,  and  the  Bishops  also. 
It  would  be  an  awful  situation  to  be  placed  in,  Not  a  soul  there 
23 


354 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


could  tell  what  good  that  measure  could  do,  but  he  could  tell 
what  harm  it  would  do — it  would  enslave  the  Bishops,  enslave 
the  elders,  enslave  the  people. 

Elder  Revels  said  it  was  known  to  every  one  who  understood 
our  government  that  there  was  no  denomination  which  required 
its  ministers  to  perform  so  much  labor  as  we  demanded  at  the 
hands  of  our  Bishops.  They  were  continually  traveling  through- 
out the  Connection — who  could  know  as  much  about  the  field  as 
they  ?  This  proposition  was  a  reflection  upon  the  Episcopal 
Department  of  the  Church,  and  he  did  not  think  fifteen  mem- 
bers of  the  Conference  would  vote  for  it. 

Elder  Shorter  rose  and  declared  himself  in  favor  of  the  meas- 
ure. He  was  a  Low  Churchman  in  principle.  He  would  not 
speak  for  the  whole  Connection,  but  for  himself  and  the  district 
in  which  he  lived.  He  thought  the  arguments  of  Brothers 
Campbell  and  Johnson  fallacious,  and  the  measure  good  and 
productive  of  good. 

Dr.  Bias  said  that  on  the  one  side  the  contest  was  for  power, 
on  the  other  for  principle.  The  fathers  provided  that  the  power 
of  appointment  should  never  be  in  the  hands  of  one  man.  No 
such  power  was  given  in  the  Discipline  of  1817.  That  of  1832, 
which  was  the  second  edition,  embraced  the  same  principle. 
Those  opposed  to  the  Bishops'  council  desire  to  subvert  the  fun- 
damental principle  of  our  government.  Those  very  men  who 
oppose  it  are  the  secret  enemies  of  the  episcopacy,  going  about 
and  stirring  up  the  people  to  rebellion.  The  fact  that  the  people 
have  submitted  to  the  threats  of  the  government  of  the  United 
States  has  produced  the  despotism  which  now  obtains  in  that 
government.  "  We  do  not  propose  to  interfere  with  the  appoint- 
ing power  of  the  Bishop."  He  went  on  to  say:  "A  merchant 
skilled  in  the  laws  of  the  cast  tin  trade,  coming  West,  must  go 
to  some  western  man  to  be  instructed  in  the  commercial  laws 
regulating  the  trade  of  the  West.  If  he  does  not,  he  is  very 
likely  to  be  unsuccessful  in  his  business.  So,  also,  when  the 
Bishop  comes  into  a  new  district,  he  must  obtain  information  of 
those  resident  in  it."' 

Elder  Schureman  said :  •■l  am  not  here  as  a  young  man  nor 
an  old  man,  but  as  a  minister  of  Christ.  The  labors  of  the  old 
men  are  those  of  the  young — the  sorrows  of  the  old  men  are  the 
sorrows  of  the  young — the  glories  of  the  old,  if  any  at  all,  are 
the  glories  of  the  young.    There  are  honest  men  on  the  side  of 


General  Conference  of  1856 — Continued. 


355 


those  who  oppose  the  idea,  of  the  Bishops'  council.  This  meas- 
ure was  proposed  by  Brothers  Shorter,  Green  and  their  colleagues. 
These  five  advisers  are  swift  horses,  indeed;  but  they  are  untried, 
yea,  unbroken  colts — they  are  strong,  but  their  mettle  is  too 
ureat ;  they  will  doubtless  look  very  fine  when  they  come  to  be 
harnessed  up  in  the  chariot,  but  I  am  afraid  of  them.  I  am 
afraid  that,  moved  by  their  fiery  spirit,  they  will  scarce  give  the 
driver  time  to  seize  the  bridle  before  they  will  begin  to  prance 
and  kick — and  just  as  soon  as  they  hear  the  whip  cracking  over 
their  heads,  they  will  fly  off  with  the  speed  of  lightning,  and 
dash  our  chariot  to  pieces.  Away  with  these  fiery,  untried,  un- 
broken colts!  Away  with  them!  They  seem  beautiful,  indeed  ; 
but  they  have  too  much  mettle.  Away  with  them !  Away  with 
this  Bishop's  council!  Let  the  Bishops  consult  the  Discipline, 
the  Bible,  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  they  will  have  counsel  enough." 

Elder  Moore  was  in  favor  of  the  council.  Said  he  :  "  If  we  are 
to  judge  the  future  by  the  past,  we  are  not  sufficiently  provided 
with  restraints  upon  our  episcopacy.  The  harmony  and  peace 
of  the  Church  requires  this  measure.  Does  making  a  man  a 
Bishop  make  him  infallible?"  he  questioned. 

Elder  Way  man  thought  the  Bishops  had  counsellors,  as  pro- 
vided by  the  Discipline  on  page  70th.  He  expressed  himself  as 
thinking  that  these  brethren  wanted  a  Bishops'  council  because 
they  wanted  to  be  Bishops  themselves,  and  as  they  could  not 
obtain  the  bishopric  they  were  determined  to  obtain  a  board 
of  counsellors,  get  in  that  board  themselves,  and  then  control 
the  Bishops.  He  denied  that  those  opposed  to  it  coveted  power, 
but  said  that  such  was  the  case  with  its  advocates,  and  that  they 
contemplated  in  that  council  far  more  than  they  expressed.  He 
concluded  with  this  hypothesis:  "  Suppose  this  measure  carries— 
after  the  Bishops'  counsellors  shall  have  given  him  advice  about 
the  appointment  of  A,  B,  C  and  D — what  will  he  do  with  these 
counsellors?  Who  shall  give  him  advice  about  them?  Of 
course,  these  counsellors  are  the  infallible  men,  and  with  them 
wisdom  will  die." 

Brother  Green  declared  the  advocates  of  the  measure  never  for 
one  moment  supposed  that  it  would  carry  now.  They  knew 
what  materials  they  had  to  deal  with.  "  I  wish  to  know,"  he 
conduced,  "who  of  those  now  opposed  to  this  measure  can  here- 
after go  and  preach  that  '  In  the  multitude  of  counsellors  there 
is  safety.' " 


356 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


After  this  length}'  and  free  expression  of  opinion  the  question 
was  put  and  lost.  Fifteen  were  found  to  vote  for  it,  and  thirty- 
nine  against  it. 

The  Bishops  again  came  up  for  discussion  in  a  movement  set 
on  foot  by  Rev.  J.  A.  Shorter  and  A.  W.  Wavman,  to  the  effect 
that  "  Each  of  the  Bishops  shall  reside  within  the  limits  of  their 
respective  districts,  and  the  time  to  preside  in  their  respective 
districts  shall  be  from  one  General  Conference  to  another.  Never- 
theless, nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  conflict  with 
the  other  arrangements  made  concerning  the  episcopal  power." 

As  usual  there  were  vehement  opposers  and  advocates.  One 
of  the  latter,  Brother  Green,  labored  to  show  that  the  wants  of 
the  people  required  its  adoption — the  Bishops'  usefulness  also 
required  it.  The  Connection,  he  said,  would  be  ruined  if  it  was 
not  adopted. 

Dr.  Bias  opposed  the  measure,  thinking  that  the  brethren 
"  were  still  aiming  at  the  chair" — Bishop  Nazrey  being  the  target. 
He  thought  such  a  measure  would  so  derange  the  episcopal  move- 
ments as  to  make  it  necessary  to  call  an  extra  General  Confer- 
ence to  elect  another  Bishop.  The  Bishops  should  have  the  same 
rights  that  the  elders  enjoy — the  right  of  living  wherever  they 
please1. 

Brother  Green  said  in  explanation  that  it  was  not  his  desire  to 
have  the  Bishops  reside  in,  but  preside  over,  their  respective  dis- 
tricts. 

Brother  Shorter  said  that  Bishop  Nazrey  did  not  live  out  of 
his  district.  If  he  were  asked  whether  Conference  was  compelled 
to  pay  the  traveling  expenses  of  Bishop  Nazrey  to  Canada,  his 
answer  would  be,  No.  So,  also,  of  Bishop  Quinn.  He  was  cer- 
tain that  the  three  Bishops  were  with  him  in  this  particular. 

Elder  Moore  agreed  with  him,  and  added,  that  were  it  possible, 
the  Bishops  should  be  omnipresent;  they  ought  to  have  their 
homes  in  the  district  over  which  they  preside.  This  measure 
would  not  make  slaves  of  them.  They  ought  always  to  be  where 
they  could  be  easily  reached,  so  as  to  come  to  the  cry  of  the 
needy  churches. 

Elder  Robinson  was  opposed,  and  considered  two  years  long 
enough  for  any  one  Bishop  to  preside  over  one  district.  Their 
term  should  be  like  the  elders.  .  , 

When  the  proposition  was  finally  put  to  the  house,  it  was  in- 
definitely postponed  by  a  vote  of  twenty-three  to  two. 


General  Conference  of  1856 — Continued. 


857 


The  subsequent  action  of  this  General  Conference  touching  all 
important  points  will  be  seen  in  the  following  synopsis: 

They  rejected  the  proposition  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of 
the  M.  E.  Church  to  establish,  or  aid  in  establishing,  a  school  of 
a  high  order  for  colored  youth,  upon  the  ground  that  it  seemed 
to  be  the  scheme  of  an  avowed  colonizationist,*  and,  therefore, 
nothing  good  could  come  of  it.  Rev.  M.  M.  ( Hark  said,  in  effect, 
thai  the  M.  1'].  Church  was  pro-slavery  and  colonizationist  to  the 
backbone;  that  it  must  he  the  colored  man's  enemy;  that  "we 
suspect  the  people  who  have  been  opposing  and  oppressing  us 
for  more  than  t  wo  hundred  years;"  that  the  Anglo-Saxon  was 
treacherous,  and  given  to  breaking  compromises;  that  he  was  his- 
torically  known  to  he  the  oppressor  of  the  weak,  the  despair  of  the 
poor  and  ignorant,  especially  of  the  black  man;  that  colored  men 
were  too  credulous;  that,  in  fact,  the  General  Conference  musl  be 
slow  to  close  with  any  overture — "  especially  from  men  avowedly 
colonizationists — another  term  for  expatriation ;"  so,  under  such 
fallacious  reasoning,  the  brethren,  honest  in  (minions  and  mean- 
ing well,  suffered  their  prejudices  against  the  scheme  of  African 
colonization  to  induce  them  to  reject  one  of  the  most  benevolent 
plans  ever  devised  by  man  for  the  elevation  of  a  down-trodden 
people.  The  members  did  not  see  that,  as  education  would  be 
an  irresistible  power,  he  who  put  it  into  our  hands  would  prove 
one  of  our  best  friends,  for  he  would  develop  the  inherent  force 
within  us,  which,  acting  like  the  upheaval  of  an  earthquake, 
must  lay  in  the  dust  Rim  who  had  planted  his  feet  upon  our 
once  prostrate  bodies. 

The  Committee  on  Missions  reported  in  favor  of  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  parent  society,  with  headquarters  at  Baltimore,  but  this 
was  neglected,  though  the  General  Conference  hastily,  at  the  in- 
stance of  Rev.  J.  R.  V.  Morgan,  and  at  the  last  moment,  set  off  a 
nns-ion  in  Western  Africa,  with  Rev.  J.  R.  V.  Morgan  as  mis- 
sionary ;f  but  that  was  the  end  of  the  mission  in  Western  Africa. 
Had  the  parent  society  been  properly  formed,  and  the  planting 
of  the  mission  committed  to  its  care  under  proper  supervision, 
the  result  would  have  been  widely  different. 

*  Dr.  Durbin  was  referred  to. 

T  Rev.  J.  R.  V.  Morgan  procured  credentials  and  secured  funds  for  the 
purpose,  but  for  some  reason  informally  left  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  and  con- 
nected himself  witli  the  Zion  Wesleyan  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


358 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Various  amendments  were  made  to  the  Discipline.  The  section 
relating  to  the  composition  of  the  General  Conference  was  one  of 
these.  It  was  amended  so  as  to  read:  "The  General  Conference 
shall  be  composed  of  all  the  traveling  preachers  who  have  trav- 
eled six  full  years  in  our  Connection,  and  one  regularly  licensed 
local  preacher  of  four  years  standing  for  every  eight  hundred  lay 
members  returned  at  the  previous  Annual  Conference."  A 
Bishop  was  to  be  constituted  "  by  the  election  of  the  General 
Conference;  nevertheless  it  shall  require  a  majority  of  all  the 
votes  of  the  members  present,  and  the  laying  on  of  hands  of  a 
Bishop  and  six  elders,"  while,  if  from  any  cause,  there  be  no 
Bishop  in  our  Church,  it  was  provided  that  "  The  General  Confer- 
ence shall  elect  one,  and  the  elders,  or  any  seven  of  them  who 
may  be  appointed,  shall  ordain  him." 

No  preacher  was  to  be  allowed  "to  remain  in  one  circuit  or 
station  longer  than  two  years,  and  no  preacher  in  one  city  longer 
than  four  years,  excepting  the  editor  and  general  book  steward." 
The  subject  of  maladministration  was  also  dealt  with,  and  points 
more  clearly  defined.  An  article  was  also  incorporated  in  sec- 
tion 3,  regulating  the  duty  of  the  Bishop,  that  there  might  not 
be  "danger  of  destroying  our  itinerant  general  superintendency 
by  dividing  the  Connection  into  dioceses."  They  were,  there- 
after, "to  travel  at  large  among  the  people,  and  visit  every  circuit 
and  station,  and  while  one  may  have  the  charge  of  a  certain 
portion  of  the  episcopal  labor  assigned  him,  yet,  in  any  district 
where  his  presence  and  the  interests  of  the  Connection  shall  re- 
quire the  action  of  a  Bishop  in  the  absence  of  the  one  appointed 
to  that  district,  or  jointly,  if  present,  to  subserve  the  interests 
of  the  Church  in  general,  or  in  all  cases  of  difficulty  where  the 
presence  of  a  Bishop  may  be  required,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
Bishop  nearest  to  attend  when  notice  is  given  by  the  official  offi- 
cers of  the  Church." 

The  Bishop's  salary  was  also  placed  at  $200  per  year,  with 
board  for  himself,  wife,  and  children  under  twelve  years  of  age; 
also,  house  rent,  fuel  and  traveling  expenses ; "  and  provision  was 
made  for  raising  that  amount.  A  traveling  preacher's  allowance 
was  to  be  the  same  as  a  Bishop's. 

Some  important  resolutions  were  also  adopted,  but  not  all 
were  carried  out.  "  That  all  the  amendments  and  alterations  be 
placed  in  a  separate  part  of  the  minutes,"  was  one  of  these,  as 
was  also  the  one  "that  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  hy  the 


General  Conference  of  1856-  -Continued, 


35$ 


chair  to  revise  the  present  hymn  book,  and  present  the  same  to 
the  Bishops  to  be  reviewed  by  them,  and  then  to  the  hook  com- 
mittee in  Philadelphia,  with  instructions  to  publish  it  as  soon  as 
practicable." 

An  episcopal  seal  was  also  ordered,  which  was  manufactured 
under  the  supervision  of  Bishop  Payne.  Its  face  is  embellished 
with  an  open  Bible,  from  which  divine  light  is  radiating;  the 
heavenly  cross  lying  upon  the  book;  the  Eternal  Spirit,  in  the 
form  of  a  dove,  hovering  over  it;  the  title  of  the  denomination 
below  the  Bible.  Upon  the  border  of  the  seal  is  the  motto:  "God 
our  Father,  Christ  our  Redeemer,  Man  our  Brother." 

The  Ohio  A  unual  Conference  was  also  "  requested,  at  its  session 
immediately  preceding  the  next  General  Conference,  to  elect  one 
of  the  Bishops  and  two  elders  for  the  objects  following:  The 
Bishop  to  prepare  a  written  address,  to  be  delivered  at  the  open- 
ing of  the  General  Conference,  to  be  termed  the  Episcopal  Ad- 
dresses on  Ministerial  Education,  and  on  the  Intellectual  Eleva- 
tion of  our  Race." 

Inducements  were  also  offered  by  resolutions  to  any  who  might 
deposit  money  in  the  book  concern,  interest  being  allowed,  and 
the  preachers  to  be  allowed  a  percentage  on  cash  paid  for  books 
and  papers. 

The  following  preamble  and  resolutions  were  also  adopted  in 
reference  to  the  history  of  our  Church  : 

Whereas,  We,  the  members  of  this  General  Conference,  have  heard 
from  Bishop  Payne  that  the  history  of  our  Church  will  be  completed  in 
twelve  months ;  and 

Whereas,  In  view  of  the  great  difficulty  he  labored  under  in  gathering 
materials  for  said  history  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  we  return  our  thanks  to  him  for  his  unremitting  labors, 
believing  that  said  history  will  greatly  promote  the  religious,  moral  and 
social  elevation  of  our  people. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  we  will  do  all  in  our  power  in  the  various  charges  to 
impress  upon  our  people  the  importance  of  each  family  securing  a  copy  of 
the  same. 

It  was  also  resolved  to  allow  the  Bishop,  "for  this  service  in 
writing  the  history  of  our  Church,  twenty-five  cents  on  every 
dollar  arising  from  the  sale  of  said  book." 

In  this  year  of  1856,  at  the  last  Annual  Conference  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Canada,  one  of  the  early  pioneers  and  an 
elder  in  the  Church,  Rev.  Alexander  Helmsley,  was  numbered 


360  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

among  the  dead  of  the  year.  He  was  born  in  Queen  Anne 
county.  Md.,  1790.  He  removed  to  the  state  of  New  Jersey  in 
the  course  of  time,  and  married  there  in  1821.  In  1823  he  was 
converted,  and  licensed  to  exhort  in  1827,  by  Richard  Williams, 
an  elder  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  shortly  after  that  he  was 
licensed  to  preach  by  Rev.  Israel  Scott,  also  an  elder.  He  was 
arrested  finally  by  his  pursuers,  and  lay  in  prison  six  months, 
when  Paul  Brown,  a  lawyer,  brought  his  ease  before  the  Supreme 
Court  of  New  Jersey,  which  liberated  him.  He  removed  to 
Canada  in  1836,  and  was  ordained  a  deacon  by  Bishop  Mor- 
ris Brown,  in  Toronto,  in  1840.  In  1842  he  was  made  an  elder. 
He  traveled  until  February  29th,  18-54,  when  he  was  taken  ill 
with  dropsy,  and  died  November  15th,  1855.  His  last  words 
were  the  memorable  ones  of  Bishop  McKendree — "All  is  well; 
all  is  well." 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 


SEPARATION  FROM  THE  A.  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

The  Last  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Canada — Episcopal 
Form  of  Government  Adopted— Relations  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  to  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church— Articles  of  Faith— The  New  Twenty-third  Article  by 
D.  A.  Payne — Bishop  Nazrey's  Name  Proposed  for  Bishop — Bishop  Payne' 
Explains  the  Designs  of  the  General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
— Organization  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church — Bishop  Nazrey  Elected  its  First 
Bishop — Reflections — Mission  Established  in  Central  America. 

ASIDE  from  the  General  Conference  of  the  year  1856,  the 
greatest  events,  and  the  only  extraordinary  ones,  were  the 
dissolution  of  the  Connection  and  the  organization  of  the 
British  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Canada. 

The  last  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Can- 
ada assembled  in  the  town  of  Chatham,  C.  W.,  on  the  23d 
of  September,  in  the  house  of  Sister  Taylor.  After  the  opening 
i wcrcises  the  usual  committees  were  appointed  to  consider  the 
attitude  of  the  Conference  in  relation  to  the  approaching  Con- 
vention for  the  organization  of  the  new  Church.  Other  business 
of  the  Conference  was  then  transacted.  The  St.  Catherine's  and 
Dummondsville  Mission  were  consolidated  into  one,  and  the  name 
of  the  Queensbush  Circuit  was  changed  into  that  of  Peel  Township. 

Monday,  the  29th  of  September,  at  10  o'clock,  was  the  time  ap- 
pointed for  the  termination  of  the  existence  of  the  Conference. 
At  that  time  Bishop  Quinn*  rose  and  gave  out  the  hymn, 
"  Come,  let  us  join  our  cheerful  songs,"  etc.,  and  after  the  singing 
of  the  two  stanzas,  he  stopped,  and  called  upon  Rev.  Samuel 
Brown  to  pronounce  the  benediction.    Bishop  Payne  f  then  pro- 

*  Bishop  William  Paul  Quinn  was  then  the  senior  Bishop.  He  filled 
that  place  from  1852  to  1873 — from  May  of  the  former  year  to  February  of 
the  latter — a  period  of  about  twenty  years  and  nine  months. 

t  Bishop  Payne  had  been  the  presiding  Bishop  of  the  Province  of  Canada 
from  June,  1854,  till  the  close  of  the  Canada  Conference  in  September, 
1856,  a  period  of  about  two  years  and  three  months.  He  then  became  the 
historiographer  of  the  convention,  because  he  was  the  accredited  histori- 
ographer of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  whose  mission  in  Canada  was  about  to 
terminate,  and  would  be  finished  as  soon  as  the  convention  had  con- 
structed the  missionary  churches  into  a  separate  and  independent  organ- 
ization. 

(361) 


362 


History  of  the. A.  M.  &  Church. 


tiounced  the  historical  fact  that  "the  Annual  Conference  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Canada  is  extinct,  and  the  convention  will  be 
opened  at  12  M." 

So  the  Conference  became  extinct.  It  had  run  a  career  of  sev- 
enteen years,  and  we  trust  had  accomplished  something  for 
Christ  and  fallen  man.  In  anothei  half  hour  it  would  meet  in 
the  convention  to  remodel  the  Church  in  Canada.  It  was  to  be 
seen  what  spirit  would  animate  its  members,  what  principles 
would  guide  their  movements,  and  what  would  be  the  result  of 
their  deliberations.  At  that  moment  what  would  he  the  future 
history  of  this  branch  of  the  Redeemer's  Church  was  known 
only  to  Him  who  sees  the  end  from  the  beginning. 

The  hour  of  twelve  having  arrived,  Rev.  Samuel  H.  Brown 
was  appointed  chairman  of  this  convention  until  the  body  should 
elect  a  Bishop  or  general  superintendent,  and  Rev.  William  H. 
Jones  was  appointed  secretary  pro  tern.  As  preliminary  to  the 
important  measures  about  to  be  entered  into,  it  was  suggested, 
after  singing  and  prayer,  that  a  portion  of  God's  sacred  word 
should  be  read,  which  was  done — the  ninety-second  chapter  of 
Psalms  being  the  portion  selected  and  read  by  the  chairman  in 
his  usual  clear,  distinct  and  shrill  voice.  After  the  singing  of 
another  hymn,  followed  by  prayer,  a  committee  of  five  itinerant 
preachers  of  the  Canadian  churches  was  appointed,  consisting 
of  the  following  brethren:  Benjamin  Steward,  H.  J.  Young, 
Richard  Warren,  James  Harper  and  W.  H.  Jones.  The  duty  of 
this  committee  was  to  examine  the  credentials  of  all  the  dele- 
gates, and  report  to  the  convention  the  names  of  those  who 
were  entitled  to  a  seat.  Considerable  opposition  was  made  to 
this  by  Rev.  Stephen  Smith,  from  the  Church  in  the  United 
States,  on  the  ground  that  it  excluded  local  preachers.  This  was 
opposed  by  Brother  Young.  Rev.  A.  R.  Green  said  that  this 
convention  came  into  existence  by  a  grant  of  the  General  Con- 
ference of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  according  to  the  usage  of  the  said 
Church  and  other  Christian  bodies.  He,  therefore,  maintained 
that  he  and  others  had  as  much  right  there  as  the  preachers  of 
the  Canadian  Conference.  He  said  he  respected  the  rights  of  the 
said  brethren,  but  not  the  right  to  cut  off  himself  and  his  col- 
leagues of  the  convention  from  acting  on  all  committees,  and  he 
proceeded  to  read  that  portion  of  the  minutes  of  the  General 
Conference  of  1856,  which  relates  to  this  convention. 

W.  Jones  maintained  that  his  position  was  correct,  and  that  it 


Reparation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


was  not  intended  to  cut  off  any  person  from  the  rights  of  the 
convention.  Stephen  Smith  held  that  if  there  were  any  dele- 
gates there— lawfully  such — they  were  those  appointed  by  the 
Genera]  Conference  as  well  as  those  elected  by  the  Canadian 
churches.  The  call  issued  by  the  Hoard  of  Bishops  was  then 
read  and  explained  by  W.  H.  Young.  The  excitement  rose  very 
high,  but  the  foregoing  committee  was  appointed  by  a,  vole  that 
carried  all  but  three  in  the  affirmative. 

The  next  step  also  met  opposition.  It  was  moved  to  appoint 
a  committee  to  draft  rules  to  govern  the  deliberations  of  the  con- 
vention, and  it  was  stated  that  it  was  not  yet  known  who  were 
legal  members  of  that  body,  but  this  committee  was  also  ap- 
pointed. A.  R.  Green  said  that  if  this  was  the  course  they  were 
going  to  pursue  a  dangerous  precedent  would  be  established, 
which  would  result  in  great  mischief.  He  would  "  never  yield 
his  credentials  to  that  committee."  Rev.  Thomas  Stringer 
claimed  that  it  was  wrong  to  proceed  any  further;  that  no  com- 
mittee ought  to  be  appointed  until  the  convention  was  perfectly 
organized,  and  this  could  not  be  realized  till  the  credentials  had 
been  examined  and  the  members  were  known.  S.  Smith  main- 
tained that  the  mode  they  were  pursuing  was  contrary  to  cus- 
tom, but  H.  J.  Young  said  that  they  would  not  be  governed  by 
custom  or  usage — that  the  convention  would  establish  a  prece- 
dent for  all  future  conventions. 

After  some  further  discussion  a  movement  was  made  to  adjourn, 
which  was  carried  by  a  large  majority. 

At  4:00  p.  m.  the  convention  reassembled  and  reported  as  fol- 
lows : 

The  Committee  on  Credentials  report  in  favor  of  the  delegates  elected 
by  the  people  ;  but  refer  those  chosen  by  the  Quarterly  Conference  for  the 
consideration  of  the  convention.  They  further  report  S.  Smith,  A.  R. 
Green  and  M.  M.  Clark  as  the  delegates  from  the  General  Conference  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States,  and  that  M.  M.  Clark  had  dep- 
utized Rev.  Elisha  Weaver  in  his  place.  But  they,  the  committee,  are  of 
the  opinion  that  M.  M.  Clark  had  no  power  to  deputize  any  one  in  his 
stead,  as  no  provision  is  made  for  such  a  course.  They  referred  the  matter 
to  the  convention. 

Though  fiercely  opposed  by  the  delegates  from  the  states,  be- 
cause of  the  rejection  of  Brother  Weaver,  on  motion  of  Charles 
Pierce,  the  report  was  adopted.  But  after  an  explanation  by 
Bishop  Payne,  touching  Rev.  E.  Weaver  as  a  substitute  for  M.  M. 


* 


364  History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

Clark,  Brother  G.  W.  Broadie  moved  that  he  be  admitted  to  a 
seat  in  the  convention,  which  was  carried.  Then  S.  Smith 
maintained  that  those  delegates  appointed  by  the  Quarterly 
Conference  ought  to  be  admitted  as  well  as  those  who  were 
elected  by  the  people.  H.  J.  Young  said,  as  it  respected  the 
manner  of  election  by  the  people,  Brother  Smith  was  wrong. 
He  did  not  personally  oppose  the  two  classes  of  delegates  nor 
Brother  Weaver,  but.  as  a  committee,  felt  that  they  were  not  at 
liberty  to  admit  them;  therefore,  it  was  submitted  to  the  conven- 
tion. Some  severe  and  bitter  retorts  were  indulged  in  by  both 
sides,  when  Rev.  A.  R.  Green  stated  that  his  opposition  to  the 
report  did  not  come  alone  from  the  reasons  already  stated,  but 
because  the  Bishops  were  omitted;  but  it  was  said,  in  answer  to 
this,  that  the  Bishops  were  members  <y  officio — their  right  had  not 
been  questioned,  and  it  was  not  necessary  to  make  mention  of 
them.  Further  contention  took  place,  but  the  debate,  which 
had  proven  so  severe  and  stubborn,  was  put  to  rest  by  the  follow- 
ing motion  of  Rev.  W.  R.  Jones: 

Whereas,  Two  sets  of  delegates  have  been  elected  and  sent  to  this 
convention  ;  and 

Whereas,  The  people  have  obeyed  the  instructions  given  them;  there- 
fore, be  it 

Regolved,  That  all  the  delegates  regularly  elected  be  admitted  ;  provided, 
that  no  one  circuit  or  station  shall  cast  more  than  one  vote. 

Rev.  Thomas  Stringer,  who  had  left  his  credentials  at  home, 
was  admitted  to  his  seat,  and  Brothers  Young,  Broadie  and 
Smith  were  appointed  to  nominate  permanent  officers  of  the 
convention;  but  this  was  opposed  for  various  reasons,  promi- 
nent among  which  was  the  opinion  that  the  appointment  of 
Brother  Brown  in  the  presence  of  three  Bishops  was  wrong, 
though  contrary  views  were  held.  The  result  was  that  the  chair- 
man finally  appointed  a  committee  of  three  Bishops  to  report 
permanent  officers,  after  which  tin,-  convention  adjourned  for  the 
first  day. 

The  second  day's  proceedings  opened  with  singing,  reading 
of  scripture  and  prayer.  The  Committee  on  Nomination  re- 
ported the  following  as  the  permanent  officers  of  the  conven- 
tion: Samuel  H.  Brown,  president;  Thomas  W.  Stringer,  vice- 
president;  George  W.  Broadie,  secretary ;  and  Benjamin  Steward, 
assistant  secretary.  The  report  of  the  Committee  on  Rules  was 
read  and  adopted,  as  was  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions: 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  365 


Whereas,  We  acknowledge  cheerfully  the  act  ion  of  a  member  of  the 
Canadian  Conference  in  presenting,  by  resolution  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  of  the  United  States,  an  invitation  to  the 
Bench  of  Bishop.s  to  be  present  at  the  contemplated  convention  to  he  held 
in  Chatham,  Canada  West,  for  the  separation  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in 
Canada  from  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  we  most  cordially  welcome  the  Bench  of  Bishops  to  par- 
ticipate with  us  in  our  deliherations  in  our  convention,  and  we  declare 
them  memhers  de  facto  of  this  convention. 

On  motion  of  Rev.  William  Jones,  a  committee  of  five  were 
appointed  to  report  a,  form  of  Church  government,  and  the  name 
and  title  by  which  this  new  Church  should  thereafter  be  known. 
This  important  and  historic  committee  consisted  of  the  following 
named  persons:  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones,  formerly  of  Baltimore,  Mary- 
land, U.  S.  A.,  then  resident  in  North  Chatham,  C.  'W.;  Rev. 
H.  J.  Young,  formerly  of  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  U.  S.  A.,  then 
resident  of  East  Chatham,  C.  W.;  Rev.  T.  W.  Stringer,  a  licen- 
tiate, local  preacher,  formerly  of  Cincinnati,  O.,  then  resident 
of  Buxton,  Township  of  Raleigh,  C.  W. ;  Mr.  Wiley  Reynolds, 
layman,  resident  at  Windsor,  C.  W.;  Rt.  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey, 
Philadelphia  diocese  and  city,  then  resident  five  miles  west 
of  Chatham ;  and  Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  Bishop  presiding  over 
Canada,  Baltimore  and  Charleston,  S.  C.  Subsequently,  Bishop 
Nazrey  resigned  from  this  committee,  and  William  Bowers,  lay- 
man, of  St.  Catherine's,  succeeded  him.  This  important  commit- 
tee, therefore,  consisted  of  three  preachers  and  two  laymen.  It 
was  moved  by  Brother  A.  R.  Green  that  the  three  Bishops  and 
delegates  from  the  United  States  meet  jointly  with  this  commit- 
tee, as  the  better  way.  He  remarked  that  the  Canadian  brethren 
were  disposed  to  carry  everything  their  own  way,  and  if  the 
Bishops  and  delegates  from  the  states  were  not  added,  it  would 
surely  create  bad  feelings;  for,  when  this  committee  should  re- 
port, if  the  brethren  were  to  object  there  would  be  endless  strife; 
but,  as  for  his  part,  he  would  "hold  his  peace  and  say  no  more." 

Brother  H.  J.  Young  was  willing  for  the  Bishops  to  meet  the 
committee  as  counsellors,  but  not  Brother  A.  R.  Green.  Stephen 
Smith  maintained  the  views  of  the  last  named  brother,  and  read 
the  resolutions  of  M.  M.  Clark  from  the  minutes  of  the  General 
Conference,  relating  to  the  establishment  of  a  new  church  in 
Canada.  He  applied  them  to  the  point  at  issue,  and  maintained 
that  the  organization  of  the  new  church  could  not  be  completed 
till  1860.    These  views  were  opposed  by  W.  H.  Jones,  who 


366 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Chwrch. 


thought  them  ridiculous,  and,  if  entertained,  would  place  the 
Canadian  Church  in  the  position  of  an  amphibious  animal,  liv- 
ing in  both  elements,  but  having  his  home  in  neither.  After 
some  further  discussion  Bishop  Nazrey  said  that  the  future  good 
of  the  churches  required  that  there  be  no  ill  feeling  on  this 
question.  He  was  of  the  opinion  that  the  Bishops  ought  to  be 
members  of  the  committee  to  draft  the  form  of  Church  govern- 
ment, and  the  committee  ought  to  exercise  their  own  judgment, 
bring  in  their  report,  and  submit  the  results  of  their  delibera- 
tions and  labors  to  the  convention  for  approval  or  rejection.  As 
respecting  the  name  and  title,  he  cared  not  much  about  that — a 
name  was  comparatively  a  small  consideration  to  him.  He  was 
willing  to  adopt  any  name,  if  by  so  doing  he  could  do  good. 

The  discussion  continued.  A .  K.  Green  said  that,  as  he  intended 
to  make  his  future  home  in  Canada,  he  wan  anxious  to  have  a 
part  in  making  the  house  which  should  be  his  future  abode, 
and  he  claimed  that  great  injustice  was  done  the  delegates  from 
the  United  States.  G.  W.  Broadie  said  he  could  not  see  where 
such  injustice  had  been  done.  He  felt  that  "  we  are  one,  and 
ought  to  act  harmoniously."  H.  J.  Young  said  that  he  was 
favorable  to  the  amendment  offered  by  \V.  H.  Jones  (to  strike 
out  the  words  "  delegates  from  the  United  States"),  because  none 
had  been  deprived  of  their  rights  nor  of  their  seats.  He  was  for 
leaving  off  all  the  Bishops,  and  he  would  state  his  reasons  as 
being  that  if  they  were  to  give  advice  to  the  committee  on  any 
point  respecting  Church  government  or  doctrine,  and  should  the 
committee  reject  that  advice,  the  case  might  be  laid  before  the 
convention,  and  in  the  event  of  the  convention  rejecting  the 
same  advice  by  endorsing  the  views  of  the  committee,  a  double 
insult  would  then  be  offered  the  office  and  judgment  of  the 
Bishops.  He  further  said  that  the  kindest  feelings  ought  to  ex- 
ist between  the  brethren  of  the  Canada  Conference  and  the 
brethren  from  the  states — that  he  was  glad  to  have  them  there. 

Rev.  Elisha  Weaver  said  that  this  was  a  case  never  before  real- 
ized in  history.  There  was  a  difference  between  the  relations 
which  the  Annual  Conferences  sustained  among  one  another  and 
those  which  the  delegates  from  the  United  States  bear  to  the 
convention  :  that  the  former  may  have  a  seat  and  participate  in 
the  deliberations  of  any  Conference  they  may  visit,  but  cannot 
vote  :  while  the  latter  may  have  all  the  rights  in  this  convention 
which  may  be  enjoyed  by  the  ministry  of  the  Canadian  churches. 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


A.  R.  Green  again  repeated  hia  views  firsl  uttered,  and  Rev.  John 
A.  Warren  made  a  few  remarks  designed  to  conciliate  the  feelings 
and  unite  the  sentiments  of  the  brethren.  The  motion  to  amend 
was  then  put  and  adopted,  w  hereupon  Bishops  Payne  and  Quinn 
tendered  their  resignations  as  members  of  the  committee,  and 
Bishop  Nazrey,  who  was  originally  placed  on  the  committee,  also 
resigned. 

At  the  next  session  W.  H.  Jones  offered  the  following  docu- 
ment for  the  consideration  of  the  convention  : 

Whereas,  We,  the  people  of  Canada,  connected  with  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  lahor  under  many  disadvantages  by  being  subject  to  the  Discipline 
of  said  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  by  being  part  and  parcel  of  said  body;  and 

Whereas,  When  a  deed  was  granted  to  us  in  the  province  by  the 
authorities  thereof,  it  was  understood  and  provision  was  made  for  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  this  province  by  the  Book  of  Discipline 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States  then  existing,  which  was  the 
Discipline  of  1828,  and  by  such  other  laws  and  regulations  as  should  from 
time  to  time  be  adopted  by  conventions  of  ministers  and  delegates  in 
Canada ;  and 

Whereas,  The  Annual  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  for  the  Dis- 
trict of  Canada,  composed  of  local  and  traveling  preachers,  which  was  in 
session  in  their  chapel  in  the  town  of  Chatham,  County  of  Kent,  C.  W., 
did,  on  the  26th  day  of  July,  1855,  in  the  presence  of  all  the  Bishops  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  one  of  whom  presided,  unanimously  petition  the 
General  Conference  of  said  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  separate  from  the  Church  ; 
and 

Whereas,  The  said  General  Conference,  on  the  14th  day  of  May,  1856, 
did  grant  the  petition  of  the  Canadians,  and  the  Bishops  of  the  said 
A.  M.  E.  Church  addressed  circulars  to  the  ministers  and  people  of  Cana- 
da, requesting  and  authorizing  them  to  meet  in  convention,  in  the  town  of 
Chatham,  C.  W.,  on  Monday,  the  29th  of  September,  1856,  to  organize  a 
separate,  distinct  and  independent  Church  ;  and 

Whereas,  The  said  convention  is  now  in  session  ;  therefore,  be  it 
Resolved,  That  we  hereby  declare  ourselves  separated  from  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church. 

Rev.  Elisha  Weaver  moved  to  lay  the  above  document  on  the 
table,  and  added  that  the  committee  was  sent  out  to  draft  a  form 
of  government,  and  not  to  bring  in  such  a  proposition  as  that. 
W.  H.  Jones  said  that  he  offered  the  document  not  as  a  member 
of  the  said  committee  but  as  a  member  of  the  convention.  Rev. 
E.  Weaver  said  that  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Church 
Government  was  not  authorized  to  introduce  such  a  document, 
and  just  as  soon  as  such  a  one  should  be  adopted,  the  privileges 
of  the  delegates  from  the  United  States  would  be  cut  off.  He 


368 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


said  the  body  was  not  prepared  for  such  a  measure  and  would 
not  be  until  the  committee  appointed  to  draft  a  form  of  Church 
government  should  report.  Stephen  Smith  said  that  they  had 
met  there  to  organize  a  new  Church,  and  then  afterwards  to  de- 
clare the  Canadians  distinct  and  separate;  but  if  this  document 
should  be  adopted  at  that  time  they  would  have  turned  them- 
selves out  of  Church.  The  committee  was  sent  out  to  report 
a  form  <>f  Church  government — that  report  must  he  made  before 
any  such  document  can  be  acted  upon. 

A.  IC  Green  said  that  if  the  document  of  Brother  Jones  he 
adopted  the  vote  of  every  man  in  the  convention  would  be  cut 
oil',  hut  those  who  lived  in  the  province, and  it  would  lead  to  the 
organization  of  distinct  churches  for  the  Canadians.  Thomas 
Stringer  dissented  from  the  remarks  of  A.  K.  Green,  holding 
that  until  a  separation  took  place  a  new  Church  could  not  be 
formed.  To  attempt  such  formation  before,  he  felt,  would  be 
treason  against  the  government  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  He 
declared  that  all  bodies  originated  that  way — they  must  declare 
themselves  independent  before  they  created  a  government  for 
themselves.  He  went  on  to  say  that  there  were  no  hostile  feel- 
ings against  the  Mother  Church,  but  they  wished  the  document 
to  go  down  to  posterity  and  show  that  they  were  men;  that  they 
must  first  pass  the  resolution  to  separate  before  they  could  treat 
with  the  members  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  as  equals  and  as  men. 

An  inquiry,  then,  elicited  the  answer  that  the  document  was 
not  the  production  of  the  committee,  and  Brother  Green  then 
proceeded  to  say,  that  in  the  General  Conference  the  Canadians 
were  asked  if  they  intended  to  change  the  name,  but  they  would 
give  no  reply,  saying  that  all  they  wanted  was  to  secure  a  discip- 
line suited  to  their  peculiar  condition ;  therefore  the  General 
Conference  gave  the  power  to  remodel  their  church  in  connec- 
tion with  the  six  delegates  sent  her.  Brother  Green  then  read 
from  the  minutes  of  the  General  Conference,  and  explained  them 
as  he  understood  them,  closing  with  the  remark,  that  after  all 
that  might  be  done  in  the  convention,  if  the  people  should  not 
approve,  it  would  be  a  nullity— that  the  people,  many  of  them, 
were  not  prepared  for  a  separation— and  warning  the  convention, 
upon  "principles  of  reason,"  to  let  the  people  know  beforehand 
what  it  intended  to  do ;  then  if  they  approved,  well  and  good. 

To  this  H.  J.  Young  had  to  say,  that  these  remarks  were  calcu- 
lated to  scatter  firebrands  among  the  people.    He,  too,  referred 


Si  jni ratio,)  From  ihc  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


369 


to  the  minutes  of  the  General  Conference,  and  maintained  that 
in  the  granl  of  the  prayer  of  the  petitioners,  power  was  given  to 
separate  and  form  a  distinct  Church.  He  ended  by  saying  that 
the  delegates  from  the  states  were  only  sent  there  to  co-operate 
with  them  (the  Canadians)  in  the  good  work. 

This  produced  much  excitement,  and  continued  calls  for  the 
question  were  heard,  But  the  house;  was  not  yet  ready  for  the 
question,  and  Stephen  Smith  rose  to  say  so,  and  to  add, 
that  it  was  never  supposed  by  the  General  Conference  thai  the 
Canadians  intended  to  pursue  such  a  course.  "Remember,"  said 
he,  "  how  our  brethren  —  I  mean  our  brethren  from  the  states — 
have  labored  for  the  planting  and  training  of  the  Church  in 
Canada.  They  have  suffered  hunger  and  many  privations  in  the 
hot  summer  and  the  cold  winter  to  make  you  what  you  are,  and 
now  this  is  the  way  you  repay  their  kindness."  But  G.  \V. 
Broadie  said  that  if  the  language  of  the  General  Conference 
meant  anything,  it  meant  separation — "to  form  for  ourselves  a 
distinct  and  independent  Church."  He  could  not  see  what  were 
the  reasons  for  the  conduct  of  the  American  brethren.  He  had 
seen  men  attempt  to  build  a  house  outside  of  another,  and  had 
also  seen  men  build  a  house  upon  another,  but  he  had  never  seen 
them  attempt  to  build  one  inside  of  another.  He  rebuked  the 
spirit  of  censure  and  retaliation  manifested  by  both  parties. 

W.  H.  Jones,  however,  still  maintained  that  the  object  of  peti- 
tioning the  General  Conference  was  to  obtain  the  right  of  sepa- 
ration, and  he  proceeded  to  explain  the  nature,  scope  and  force 
of  the  deed  granted  by  the  Provincial  Government  of  Canada. 
He  referred  to  the  separation  of  the  white  Canadians  from  the 
M.  E.  Church,  and  gave  an  explanation  of  the  call  issued  by  the 
Bishops,  saying  it  gave  them  power  to  do  that  which  they  wanted 
to  do. 

Rev.  C.  Pierce  said,  that  when  a  man  wants  a  wife  he  first  pro- 
cures her  consent,  then  he  goes  to  the  mother  and  obtains  hers, 
then  follows  the  wedding,  after  which  the  mother  has  no  more 
control  over  her  daughter  nor  her  property;  so,  also,  "we  first 
procured  the  consent  of  the  Canadian  people,  then  that  of  the 
General  Conference,  and  now  Ave  want  to  get  married  to  the 
daughter."  Amid  the  laughter  which  followed  this  avowal  Rev. 
A.  U.  Green  "objected  to  the  marriage." 

A  movement  to  lay  it  on  the  table  was  followed  by  the  move- 
24 


370 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


ment  of  the  previous  question,  which  was  put  to  the  house,  and 
carried  by  a  large  majority.  The  main  question  was  then  called 
for  and  submitted  to  the  house,  and  was  adopted  by  an  over- 
whelming majority — only  two  voting  in  the  negative. 

The  report  of  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Church  Gov- 
ernment was  then  made,  which  was  as  follows: 

The  committee  appointed  to  report  a  form  of  Church  Government  for 
the  consideration  of  the  convention,  and  the  name  and  title  by  which  the 
contemplated  new  Church  shall  hereafter  be  known,  begs  leave  to  report : 

First.  That  we  recommend  the  episcopal  form  of  Church  government. 

Secondly.  We  recommend  the  following  title — "The  British  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church." 

Without  debate,  this  was  adopted  by  a  large  majority.  A 
committee  of  five  was  then  appointed  to  draw  up  the  condi- 
tions and  relations  which  the  Canadian  Church  would  sus- 
tain to  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United 
States.  This  committee  consisted  of  A.  R.  Green,  chairman, 
United  States;  Thomas  \Y.  Stringer,  Canada  West;  Elisha  Weav- 
er, United  States;  II.  .J.  Young,  Canada  West;  W.  H.  Jones, 
Canada  West.  Two  days  had  been  spent  in  reaching  this  point, 
and  the  third  day's  business  was  opened  by  the  presentation  of 
the  reports  of  this  last  committe< — a  majority  and  minority 
report  being  the  result  of  their  deliberations.  The  modified 
report  of  the  minority  read  as  follows:* 

To  the  Chairman  and  Convention  of  the  British  M.  E.  Connection  in  the  Province 
of  Canada,  now  in  session : 

We,  your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of  the  relations 
and  conditions  that  shall  exist  between  the  A.  M.  E.  Connection  in  Amer- 
ica and  the  British  M.  E.  Church  in  British  North  America,  beg  leave  to 
report  the  following : 

First.  That  in  order  to  continue  a  reciprocity  of  feeling  and  interest,  there 
shall  be  a  corresponding  delegation  from  the  two  Connections,  who  shall  be 
allowed  to  participate  in  the  deliberations  in  the  General  and  Annual  Con- 
ferences of  the  aforesaid  Connections,  but  not  to  vote. 

Second.  If  any  of  the  ministers  or  members  shall  remove  from  one 
Connection  to  the  other,  they  shall  be  received  by  certificate  with  all  their 
standing  and  privileges  they  could  have  held  in  the  Connection  they  shall 
have  left. 

Third.  That  we  adopt  for  the  use  of  this  Connection  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  hymn  book  for  the  time  being. 

;i:  The  originals  of  the  majority,  as  well  as  of  the  minority  report,  were 
misplaced,  and  never  recovered. 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


37J 


Fourth.  That  we  relinquish  all  claims  to  the  book  concern  in  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  in  lieu  of  which  we  agree  to  retain  all  moneys  due  the  said  con- 
cern in  our  hand. 

Fifth.  And  if  the  Bishop  or  Bishops  of  either  Connection  are  present, 
they  shall  be  invited  to  sit  with  the  Bishop  presiding  during  their  stay  in 
the  session. 

Such  was  the  substance  of  the  minority  report,  which  II.  J. 
Young  moved  to  adopt,  and  this  was  the  occasion  of  one  of  the 
fiercest  debates  ever  witnessed. 

Elisha  Weaver  opposed  it,  saying  his  opposition  arose  from 
principle,  religion  and  uprightness.  He  said,  "We  are  still 
united  in  love  and  union,  according  to  Brother  Jones'  resolution, 
and  it  seems  that  he  meant  this  union  to  continue.  But  what 
does  the  report  say?"  He  then  read  the  report,  and  added,  "1 
am  opposed  to  the  report  of  the  majority  because  it  does  not  do 
what  was  intended  by  the  vote  of  the  General  Conference.  I 
;iin  opposed  to  it  because  so  far  as  the  two  Churches  are  now  re- 
lated it  docs  not  provide  for  the  continuance  of  this  union.  If 
you  adopt  the  report  of  the  majority  this  clay  you  cannot  hold 
any  union  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States." 

Rev.  S.  Smith  moved  to  substitute  the  report  of  the  minority 
for  that  of  the  majority,  and  sustained  his  motion  by  the  follow- 
ing laconic  speech:  "I  wish  to  clear  my  skirts  of  the  blood  of 
those  whom  I  leave  behind  me,  and  let  them  know  that  I  am 
faithful  to  the  interest  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  I  now  stand 
upon  a  crisis,  which  is  shaking  the  foundations  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  If  not  properly  met  and  mastered,  it  will  so  completely 
destroy  it  that  not  so  much  as  a  fragment  will  be  left  behind. 
Last  Sunday  morning  two  of  your  young  men  swore  allegiance 
to  her  at  your  sacred  altars,  but  now  they  deny  all  allegiance  to 
her.    Brethren,  you  are  wrong — wrong — very  wrong." 

G.  W.  Broadie  replied  by  saying:  "Mr.  President,  I  rise  to 
show  that  the  majority  report  is  not  the  scarecrow,  or  humbug, 
that  the  speaker  would  make  it."  He  then  read  that  part  of  the 
minority  report  which  tends  to  perpetuate  the  friendly  rela- 
tions between  the  two  bodies,  and  compared  it  with  that  in  the 
majority  report  which  does  the  same  thing,  proving  them  iden- 
tieal  in  meaning  and  spirit.  He  then  showed  the  way  in  which 
a  father  should  treat  his  children,  as  an  illustration  of  the  man- 
ner in  which  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  should  treat  the  B.  M.  E. 
Church.    "There  is  no  disposition/'  said  he,  "  on  the  part  of  the 


372 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


brethren  in  Canada,  to  treat  those  of  the  United  States  unkindly, 
as  there  is  no  disposition  to  act  untowardly  in  respect  to  the 
Church." 

H.  J.  Young,  in  defending  the  views  of  G.  W.  Broadie  and  of 
the  minority,  said  that  the  speaker  would  make  them  all  like  the 
Galilean  sinners,  who  were  depraved  beyond  all  others;  that  the 
fact  was  that  the  very  language  of  the  General  Conference  had 
been  used  in  the  report.  He  read  the  report  of  the  General  Con- 
ference on  the  separation,  and  added:  "'But,'  says  the  good  gen- 
tleman, 'you  shall  adopt  the  Book  of  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,'  whereas,  the  General  Conference  says  no  such  thing. 
These  brethren  would  deprive  us  of  every  liberty  as  members  of 
the  B.  M.  E.  Church.  They  have  entirely  overleaped  the  obliga- 
tions placed  upon  them  by  the  General  Conference,  and  are  med- 
dling with  business  that  does  not  belong  to  them." 

Brother  Young  then  showed  the  financial  relations  between 
the  two  bodies,  and  declared  the  intentions  of  the  Canadians  to 
do  their  duty.  Rev.  Kinnard  said:  "We  want  a  connection 
between  the  book  concern  of  Canada  and  that  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  the  United  States.  I  desire  the  union  to  be  preserved 
so  far  as  the  laws  of  both  countries  will  admit,  but  I  fear  that 
the  brethren  do  not  regard  this.  Now,  brethren,  suffer  us  to 
dictate  to  you  as  your  fathers,  and  do  that  which  will  make  us  as 
one  people,  though  we  live  on  both  sides  of  the  lakes." 

Then  G.  W.  Broadie  moved  that  the  resolution  relating  to  the 
Book  of  Discipline  and  the  fifth  article  in  the  minority  report  be 
struck  out,  and  the  third  and  fourth  articles  of  the  majority  re- 
port be  substituted  therefor.  But  this  was  opposed  by  Rev  S. 
Smith,  because  "  it  will  destroy  the  amendment  which  I  have 
offered,"  to  which  a  reply  was  made  that  his  motion  was  not  an 
amendment  but  a  substitute,  which  view  was  sustained  by  T. 
W.  Stringer. 

A.  R.  Green  said  that  the  doings  of  the  majority  were  a  trick, 
because  these  brethren  told  the  General  Conference  that  they 
desired  but  a  change  in  the  Discipline  so  as  to  make  it  harmo- 
nize with  the  British  laws.  He  then  read  the  twenty-third 
article  of  the  Doctrines  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  which  is  as  fol- 
lows: "  The  President,  the  Congress,  the  Assemblies,  the  Gov- 
ernors and  the  Councils  of  the  states,  as  delegates  of  the  people, 
are  the  rulers  of  the  United  States  of  America,  etc."  "This," 
said  he,  "is  all  that  need  be  altered  or  erased  in  the  Discipline 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  Something  harmonizing  with  the  British 
Governmenl  should  he  inserted  in  its  place.  This  was  the  pro- 
fessed wish  of  the  Canadian  brethren  while  they  were  at  the  Gen- 
eral Conference.  Now  they  want  something  else — even  the  de- 
struction of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  both  in  the  states  and  in  the 
Canadas.  Now,  in  the  sight  of  heaven,  Mr.  Chairman,  take  can; 
what  you  do.  You  are  about  to  strike  down  the  very  strongholds 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  I  intend  to  live  in  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  No  circumstances,  no  clime  or  country,  shall  ever  sep- 
arate me  from  it.  There  I  shall  live,  there  I  shall  die.  I  can  go 
home  to  my  closet,  and  bending  my  knees  before  my  Maker, 
thank  him  for  having  given  me  grace  to  do  my  duty  here  on  this 
important  question."* 

\V.  11.  Jones  considered  these  remarks  out  of  place,  but  was 
ignored  by  the  speaker,  who  continued  in  a  similar  strain,  urg- 
ing the  adoption  of  the  same  law  that  governed  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  or  the  alternative  of  "no  union  among  us."  He  stipu- 
lated for  the  same  Discipline,  with  only  such  changes  as  were 
made  necessary  by  its  conflict  with  British  law  and  government. 
He  endeavored  to  prove  from  the  episcopal  arrangements  for 
the  next  four  years,  which  he  read,  that  if  they  would  have  the 
benefit  of  Bishop  Nazrey's  administration  this  must  be  the 
course,  saying,  that  otherwise . "  our  Bishops  must  come  home, 
and  the  fact  is  that  you  cannot  have  his  administration  or  we 
cannot  admit  his  government  in  the  states."  He  also  stated  that 
the  book  concern  was  embarrassed,  and  he  laid  its  claims  before 
them,  telling  them  to  take  their  dollars  and  cents,  and  adopt 
their  report  if  they  desired. 

Rev.  T.  W.  Stringer  replied  by  saying :  "  This  call  gives  us  the 
right  to  do  what  we  are  now  doing.  Were  we  to  do  what  Brother 
Green  wants  us  to  do,  the  independence,  the  individuality  and 
the  manhood  of  our  people  would  be  taken  away  and  destroyed. 
If  we  were  now  to  adopt  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
we  should  be  acting  foolishly,  blindly  and  slavishly.  To  do  so 
is  to  act  preposterously;  for  not  one  of  us  has  read  that  new  Dis- 
cipline. We  know  not  what  it  is,  and  therefore  we  will  not 
adopt  it  until  we  shall  have  read  it;  yea,  more,  until  we  have 
analyzed  every  sentence  in  it;  not  otherwise." 

*  Brother  Green  at  last  not  only  moved  over  into  Canada,  but  became  a 
Bishop  of  a  split  from  the  B.  M.  E.  Church. 


374 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


At  this  point-  Bishop  D.  A.  Payne  arose  and  said  that  lie  dif- 
fered from  Brother  Green  in  his  views  of  the  meaning  of  the 
resolution  passed  in  the  General  Conference  touching  the  case  at 
issue.  "These  resolutions  require  the  three  delegates  to  come 
here  to  learn  first  what  are  the  wishes  of  the  Canadian  churches, 
etc.  Now.  when  men  are  sent  by  any  body,  civil  or  ecclesi- 
astical, to  another  of  the  same  kind,  to  learn  its  will,  they  are 
not  sent  to  dictate  to  it.  The  Canadian  brethren  should  be  left 
to  think,  speak  and  act  for  themselves,  and  thus  show  their  own 
individuality — thus  demonstrate  their  power  for  self-government. 
He  had  come  to  the  convention  w  ith  the  intention  of  looking  on 
and  studying  its  men  and  the  things  which  encompass  them, 
and  whenever  he  could  suggest  a  useful  thought  or  a  beneficial 
measure  he  would  do  so:  but  he  felt  that  he  had  no  power  to 
dictate  what  should  be  said  and  what  should  be  done.  He 
wanted  to  see  the  manhood  of  the  Canadians,  and  therefore  he 
desired  to  see  them  act  out  their  own  thoughts.  No  other  con- 
ditions ought  to  be  laid  down  but  such  as  are  sanctioned  by  the 
common  sense  and  rules  of  our  times  as  evinced  in  the  conduct 
of  all  intelligent  Christian  bodies  on  both  sides  of  the  lakes  and 
on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic." 

Brothei'  Weaver  said  that  lie  Brothers  Green  and  8.  Smith  were 
acting  in  view  of  the  decrees  of  the  General  Conference;  but  the 
assistant  chairman  and  his  party  were  acting  in  view  of  the 
call.  "  I  do  not  believe  that  the  minority  report  wants  to  have 
the  Canadians  adopt  the  whole  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  Disci- 
pline. If  yon  will  vote  down  the  report  of  the  minority,  do  it; 
but  I  let  you  know  this  day,  I  intend  to  clear  my  skirts  of  your" 
blood." 

Then  Mr.  Madison  Bell  arose  and  said:  "I  believe  that  the 
brethren  in  Canada  will  do  right,  and  are  determined  to  tell  the 
brethren  from  the  states  what  they  will  do;  although  the  breth- 
ren from  the  states  declare  that  we  are  doing  wrong.  To  do 
wrong,  however,  is  not  our  intention,  and  if  the  delegates  from 
the  states  will  let  us  alone,  we  will  adopt  just  such  portions  of  the 
Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  as  will  suit  us,  but  no  more." 

Bishop  W.  P.  Quinn  then  spoke,  saying  that  he  had  much  in 
his  mind  to  say,  but  that  he  would  not  say  all.  He  thought  that 
the  General  Conference  was  deceived  by  these  black  coats — they 
were  all  like  moles^he  was  one  himself  when  it  suited  his  con- 
venience.   The  Canadians  were  doing  just  what  the  General 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  F.  Church. 


875 


Conference  authorized  them  to  do.    He  was  the  first  man  that 

mounted  a  horse  to  gO  and  sec  where  the  colored  people  were  to 
be  found.  He  was  also  one  of  the  first  four  men  that  joined  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church.  He  was  an  Englishman  by  birth,  and  entitled 
to  all  the  rights  of  an  Englishman,  and  intended  to  Live  in  Can- 
ada. One  of  the  Bishops  had  his  home  there  already,  and  he  sup- 
posed the  others  would  not  he  long  out  of  it.  He  did  not  want 
to  give  up  the  people  of  Canada.  The  present  chairman,  Brother 
Samuel  Brown,  was  taken  into  the  society  and  licensed  by  him. 
He  never  would  betray  his  trust,  and  he  wanted  to  know  if  the 
people  of  Canada  meant  to  take  an  eternal  stand  against  the  A. 
M.  E.  Church;  if  so,  he  would  commence  the  right  himself. 
Naming  all  the  brethren  present,  the  Bishop  showed  how  he  had 
sustained  his  relations  to  them.  He  closed  by  saying  that  if  the 
Canadians  would  only  acknowledge  that  they  were  the  children 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  he  would  be  satisfied,  to  which  sentiment 
the  brethren  said,  "Amen." 

(i.  W.  Broadie's  amendment  was  then  called  for  and  adopted, 
only  one  voting  in  the  negative,  after  which  the  main  question — 
the  adoption  of  the  minority  report  with  Broadie's  amendment — 
was  then  called  for  and  adopted,  with  but  two  dissenting  votes. 

At  the  session  of  the  afternoon  a  committee  was  appointed  to 
select  such  matter  from  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  as 
would  be  conducive  to  the  interests  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  in 
Canada,  and  to  prepare  a  preface  for  the  new  Discipline.  Rev.  H. 
J.  Young,  W.  H.  Jones  and  George  W.  Broadie  composed  this 
extremely  delicate,  important  and  historic  committee.  Rev.  W. 
H.  Jones  then  moved  the  adoption  of  the  Articles  of  Faith  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church,  from  page  19  to  the  ninth  line  on  the  55th 
page  of  the  revised  Discipline  of  1856. 

Bishop  Payne  suggested  to  Brother  Jones  to  amend  his  motion 
so  as  to  read  "adopt  the  Articles  of  Religion  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  excepting  Article  23d.  The  Convention  assented  to  this 
suggestion.  Motion  was  then  made  by  W.  H.  Jones  to  adopt  an 
article  prepared  by  Bishop  Payne  as  a  substitute  for  the  23d,  as 
follows: 

We  acknowledge  Her  Majesty,  Queen  Victoria,  as  our  rightful  sovereign, 
possessing  supremacy  over  all  the  British  Empire  as  it  exists  in  Europe, 
Asia,  Africa,  Australia,  North  America,  South  America,  the  West  Indies, 
and  other  islands  of  the  ocean,  and  over  the  Governor-General  and  Pro- 
vincial Parliament  of  Canada. 


S76 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


We  also  believe  that  no  foreign  potentate  should  exercise  authority 
within  the  boundaries  of  her  vast  dominions,  and  inasmuch  as  British 
law  throws  the  broad  shield  of  equal  protection  over  the  life,  the  liberty, 
and  the  personal  happiness  of  all  its  loyal  subjects,  without  regard  to  the 
clime  in  which  they  were  born,  or  the  color  of  their  skin,  therefore  we 
believe  it  our  duty  ever  to  pray  that  the  most  high  God  may  make  the 
reign  of  Her  Majesty  peaceful,  prosperous  and  happy;  that  every  member 
of  the  royal  family  may  be  wise,  holy  and  useful;  and  that  the  British  Em- 
pire may  continue  to  increase  in  power  and  prosperity  till  Christ  himself 
descends  to  reign  on  earth. 

This  substitute  for  the  23d  Article  in  the  Discipline  of  the 
African  M.  E.  Church  was  adopted,  with  the  slight  change  of 
inserting  the  word  "hue"  in  the  place  of  "color."* 

Another  amendment  was  offered  in  the  addition  of  the  follow- 
ing sentence:  "It  is  lawful  for  Christian  men,  at  the  command 
of  the  magistrate,  to  wear  weapons  and  serve  in  wars."  This 
proposed  amendment  of  Brother  Green  produced  quite  a  spirited 
discussion.  There  were  those  who  felt  and  said  that  it  was  un- 
christian and  decidedly  wrong  to  insert  such  a  sentiment  and 
principle  in  the  Discipline  and  among  the  doctrinal  articles  of 
the  Church,  although  they  admitted  that  it  is  the  duty  of  Christ- 
ian men  to  defend  their  country  whenever  there  was  a  necessity 
for  such  a  movement.  The  mover,  however,  argued  that  the  col- 
•  <  >red  man  of  Canada  ought  to  put  forth  such  a  declaration ;  that  the 
time-  required  it,  and  the  Canadian  government  was  looking  to 
see  it  done  ;  while  such  a  declaration  would  strike  terror  to  slave- 
holders on  the  other  side  of  the  lake.  He  was  supported  by 
Brother  Young,  who  thought  it  in  keeping  with  the  teachings  of 
the  Saviour  himself,  that  to  take  up  arms  in  defense  of  our  wives, 
our  children,  our  country,  is  a  Christian  obligation.  The 
speaker  quoted  Christ  as  saying,  "Let  him  who  has  not  a  sword, 
sell  his  coat  and  buy  one."  The  excitement  became  very  great, 
as  he  declared  that  he  would  obey  the  injunction  were  the  slave- 
holders of  the  States  to  invade  Canada. 

It  was  finally  submitted  to  the  house  and  adopted,  ten  voting 
in  the  affirmative,  and  four  in  the  negative. 

Many  other  portions  of  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
were  altered  at  this  session  to  suit  the  peculiar  condition  of  the 
B.  M.  E.  Church. 

*The  phrases  "Governor-General"  and  "Provincial  Parliament"  was 
not  in  the  original  Article  prepared  by  Bishop  Payne,  but  were  inserted  at 
the  suggestion  of  A.  R.  Green. 


${']><! ral ion  From  (he  A.  .}[.   A'.  (1hurch. 


377 


On  the  fourth  day  the  afternoon  was  set  apart  for  the  election 
of  a  Bishop  to  superintend  the  B.  M.  E.  Church,  and  al  thai  time 
it  was  agreed  that  the  election  be  made  viva  voce.  \V.  II.  Young 
then  presented  the  following  resolution: 

Rmlved,  That  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey,  a  regularly  ordained  Bishop  of  the 
A.M.  E.  Church,  also  a  member  of  this  convention,  and  a  resident  of  the 
province  of  Canada,  he  and  hereby  is  elected  the  General  Superintendent 
or  acting  Bishop  of  the  B.  M.  K.  Church. 

This  was  the  Bignal  for  another  war  of  sentiment  and  of  words, 
and  the  opposing  parties  rallied  on  either  side  and  prepared  for 
battle.  Rev.  B.  Weaver  led  the  attack,  and  charged  the  Cana- 
dian hosts  by  saying:  "That  such  an  election  would  deprive 
Bishop  Nazrey  of  the  right  to  reside  in  the  United  States.  The 
act  would  also  create  great  trouble  in  the  states.  It  would  place 
the  Bishop  in  a  very  awkward  position,  because  he  would  be 
compelled  to  preside  over  two  distinct  churches  and  administer 
two  distinct  Disciplines." 

H.  J.  Young  replied  by  saying  that  the  deputy  from  the 
United  States  was  laboring  under  false  impressions,  and  took  false 
views  of  the  affair.  He  then  read  the  resolution  of  the  General 
Conference  touching  the  question  at  issue.  He  claimed  that 
" this  action  of  the  General  Conference  was  biblical/'  He  also 
stated  that  the  Bishops  had  made  their  arrangements  so  as  to 
meet  the  wants  of  the  Canadian  Church,  which  was  an  additional 
reason  why  they  should  elect  Bishop  Nazrey,  as  he  was  a  resident 
of  the  province,  and  would  soon  be  a  British  subject.  This  fact 
alone  would  give  him  authority  and  an  influence  in  Canada 
which  no  one  among  the  Bishops  could  have. 

This  was  but  the  prelude  to  an  exciting  debate  between  the 
parties  favoring  and  opposing  the  selection  of  a  Bishop  from  the 
States.  It  was  claimed  by  some  that  there  were  those  who  would 
be  glad  to  get  Bishop  Nazrey  out  of  the  way  so  that  an  opportu- 
nity might  be  given  those  who  aspired  to  the  bishopric.  Both 
parties  held  their  ground  with  equal  pertinacity,  and  the  discus- 
sion waxed  high,  when  Bishop  Payne  arose  and  proceeded  to  show 
the  convention  what  he  conceived  to  be  the  design  of  the  Gen- 
eral Conference.  He  read  from  the  printed  minutes  of  the  last 
General  Conference,  and  then  said:  "Brothers  Green  and  Weaver 
do  not  understand  their  mission  to  this  convention.  They  are 
here  to  learn  what  are  the  wishes  of  the  Canadians,  not  to  dic- 
tate to  them,  still  less  to  browbeat  them,  and  force  opinions  upon 


378 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


them  which  they  have  here  shown  themselves  determined  to 
reject.  I  say  that  these  two  brethren  have  overleaped  the  bounds 
of  their  mission,  as  set  forth  in  the  plain  English  of  the  General 
Conference.    Here  it  is: 

Resolved,  That  this  General  Conference  appoint  a  delegation  of  three  to 
meet  the  convention  in  Canada,  at  the  organization  of  the  Church  there, 
who  shall  learn  in  person  what  connection  that  Church  may  desire  with 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  states,  and  what  participation  that  Church  may 
wish  in  the  book  concern  of  our  Church. 

"  In  this  resolution  we  see  a  clear  recognition  of  the  independ- 
ence, power  and  freedom  of  the  Canadian  Church  to  think  and 
act  in  all  things  for  itself.  The  resolution,  therefore,  gives  no 
power  to  Brothers  Green  and  Weaver,  as  delegates,  to  lay  down 
the  conditions  of  union  and  friendly  relations  between  the  B.  M, 
E.  Church,  for  the  plain  and  simple  reason  that  the  General 
Conference  had  previously  said,  in  language  clear  and  unequiv- 
ocal, what  should  be  the  conditions  of  perpetual  union  and 
Christian  fellowship  between  the  two  branches  of  the  Redeemer's 
flock.    These  conditions  are  two-fold: 

"1st.  A  corresponding  delegation  shall  always  exist  between 
them. 

tki2d.  If  any  of  the  ministers  or  members  desire  to  remove  from 
one  Connection  to  the  other,  they  shall  be  received  by  certificate, 
with  all  their  standing,  so  that  a  friendly  relation  may  continue 
between  the  two  Connections. 

"These  are  the  conditions,  and  the  only  conditions,  laid  down 
by  the  General  Conference  in  its  collected  piety  and  wisdom.  It 
never  empowered  the  three  delegates  to  lay  down  any  other,  and, 
therefore,  when  upon  the  floor  they  tell  us,  as  they  have  repeat- 
edly done,  that  unless  you  retain  the  title  "African,"  or  unless 
you  refrain  from  the  choice  of  a  Bishop,  there  can  be  no  union 
or  friendly  relations  between  the  two  bodies.  I  say — and  I  tell 
them  to  their  faces — in  all  Christian  respect  and  brotherly  love, 
that  they  have  overleaped  the  boundaries  of  their  mission  here. 
Those  who  are  sent  to  learn,  I  repeat,  are  not  sent  to  dictate,  still 
less  to  threaten.  The  phrases,  "may  desire"  and  "may  partici- 
pate," recognize  the  full  and  unfettered  freedom  of  the  Canadian 
churches  to  think,  act,  choose  or  elect  for  themselves.  Moreover, 
I  do  not  recollect  a  single  instance  in  ecclesiastical  history  (ex- 
cept in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church)  which  constitutes  a  parallel 
to  this.    Has  it  ever  been  heard  of,  in  any  clime  or  age,  that  a 


Separation  From  th<  A.  M.  K.  Church. 


mother  Church  had  sent  a  deputation  to  a  daughter  Church 
which  it  had  planted  in  a  foreign  land,  under  a  foreign. govern- 
ment, authorizing  them  to  declare  that  ii'  the  said  daughter 
Church  would  not  adopt  its  distinctive  name  and  title  there 
should  be  no  bonds  of  Christian  union  between  them?  1  also 
doubt  if  any  such  thing  can  be  found  in  civil  or  political  history 
outside  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church." 

To  these  remarks  A.  K.  Green  replied  by  quoting  the  council 
at  Jerusalem,  from  which  decrees  had  been  issued  touching  the 
"abstinence  from  meats  offered  to  idols,  and  from  blood  and 
things  strangled,  and  from  fornication."  But  the  Bishop  replied 
to  this  by  saying  that  the  quotation  was  irrelevant,  and  he  dem- 
onstrated the  obtuseness  of  the  intellectual  vision  of  Brother 
Green.  He  claimed  that  the  quotation  itself  was  fatal  to  the 
argument  of  the  brother  and  confirmed  the  correctness  of  his 
own  position.  The  action  of  this  apostolic  council  presents  a 
dead  contrast  to  the  position  of  Brothers  Green  and  Weaver,  he 
said.  "  The  false  or  Judaizing  teachers  contended  that  the  Gen- 
tile Christians  at  Antioch,  Syria  and  Cilicia  should  bend  their 
necks  to  put  on  and  wear  the  burdensome  yoke  of  the  Jewish 
laws,  especially  circumcision.  But  the  apostles  declared  that 
they  would  not  be  burdened  with  this  yoke.  No;  they  said,  it 
seemed  good  to  the  Holy  Ghost  and  to  them  'to  lay  upon  you 
no  greater  burden  than  these  necessary  things:'  First,  from 
meat  offered  to  idols;  second,  from  blood;  third,  from  things 
strangled ;  fourth,  from  fornication.  -  These  prohibitions  were 
formed  in  the  moral  nature  and  necessity  of  things.  Now,  when 
Brother  Green  can  make  it  plain  that  the  name  of  "African"  is 
necessary  to  the  existence,  happiness  and  increasing  prosperity 
of  the  Canadian  churches,  he  will  be  able  to  show  the  parallelism 
between  the  bone  of  contention  in  the  Council  at  Jerusalem  and 
that  which  distracts  the  deliberations  of  this  convention.  The 
apostles  absolutely  refused  to  burden  the  daughter  Churches  with 
the  laws  and  usages  of  the  mother  Church ;  but  this  brother  and 
his  colleagues  seem  determined  to  force  upon  the  B.  M.  E.  Church 
not  only  the  laAvs  and  usages  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  but  its 
distinctive  title  also.  This  is  as  unjust  and  despotic  as  it  is 
unchristian  and  unnecessary.  As  to  the  election  of  Bishop  Naz- 
rey,  we  maintain  that  the  Canadians  are  exercising  a  right  which 
was  always  exercised  by  the  Christians  in  the  early  ages  of  the 
apostolic  church,  and  this  we  are  prepared  to  prove  from  the 


380 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


New  Testament  as  well  as  from  ecclesiastical  history,  when- 
ever it  shall  he  proper  to  do  so.  God  forbid  that  we  should 
attempt  to  deprive  these  brethren  of  a  right  which  has  always 
been  held  sacred  by  the  enlightened  Christians  of  all  ages,  and 
which  was  never  denied,  still  less  abridged,  till  the  spirit  of 
popery  or  ecclesiastical  despotism  began  to  develop  itself." 

The  motion  to  adopt  the  resolution  for  the  election  of  Bishop 
Nazrey  was  then  submitted  to  the  convention,  and  was  adopted 
by  a  unanimous  vote. 

Two  or  more  portions  of  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
relating  to  the  maintenance  of  the  ministry,  were  adopted  with- 
out alteration.  Before  the  close  of  this  day's  session  a  petition 
from  Brother  Benjamin  Smith,  of  Greytown,  Central  America, 
was  presented  and  read;  but,  by  the  advice  of  Bishop  Payne,  it 
was  not  acted  upon. 

The  fifth  day  opened  its  business  with  a  document  presented 
for  the  consideration  of  the  convention  by  Rev.  G.  W.  Broadie. 
It  reads  as  follows : 

Whrbbas,  We  have,  by  a  unanimous  vote,  elected  to  the  office  of  Bishop 
the  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey,  one  of  the  Bishops  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the 
United  .States,  to  preside  over  the  new  organization  in  Canada  known  as 
the  B.  M.  E.  Church  ;  and 

Whereas,  We  believe  that  we  have  fully  contemplated  the  idea  and 
spirit  advanced  by  the  General  Conference  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That,  in  view  of  the  same,  we  most  earnestly  solicit  the  Bench 
of  Bishops,  and  the  brethren  whom  they  may  select  to  sit  in  council  with 
them,  to  grant  us  our  request. 

This  document  was  adopted  without  debate.  Then  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Discipline  proceeded  by  adopting  from  page  90  to 
page  126,  with  but  two  slight  amendments — the  one  relating  to 
divorces  and  double  marriages;  the  other  to  superfluity  of  dress. 
The  former  reads  as  follows  :  "  Except  in  cases  of  fornication,  and 
the  parties  have  received  a  bill  of  divorcement  according  to  the 
laws  of  the  British  government."  Very  little  opposition  was 
made  to  this  by  Elder  Young.  The  latter  required  the  preach- 
ers to  make  a  faithful  enforcement  of  the  rules  against  extra  va- 
gant dress,  but  omitted  the  penalty.  This  was  opposed  by 
Brother  Young,  who  said  that  he  wanted  to  strike  out  the  whole 
section  if  the  penalty  be  rejected,  for  "  without  the  penalty  the 
rules  are  of  as  much  use  in  the  Discipline  as  the  fifth  wheel 
would  be  to  a  carriage.    He  thought  that  our  fathers  acted  wisely 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  381 


in  adopting  the  rules  on  dress,  as  there  was  too  much  extrava- 
gance among  our  people  j  thai  we  could  build  many  churches 
among  us  with  the  jewelry  which  they  so  uselessly  wore  on  their 
persons,  and  he  claimed  that  too  many  of  bur  preachers  indulged 
our  people  in  their  extravagance. 

Rev.  C.  H.  Pierce  spoke  against  retaining  the  penalty  to  this 
rule,  but  T.  W.  Stringer  was  in  favor  of  it,  as  it  was  given  to  us 
by  St.  Paul,  and  was  tberefore  fit  and  proper.  Rev.  Crosby  also 
sustained  the  rule,  while  Bishop  Payne  suggested  that  tobacco 
chewing  and  smoking  should  be  embraced  in  the  prohibitions, 
because  it  was  not  only  a  superfluity,  but  was  injurious  in  its 
tendencies,  injurious  to  the  pocket,  destructive  to  health  and 
life,  and  it  was  a  "  nasty  weed."  Bishop  Nazrey  suggested  that 
the  wearing  of  goatees  and  long  beards  be  also  included. 

The  convention  had  not  yet  done  with  the  election  of  the 
Bishop,  for  A.  R.  Green  read  a  document  protesting  against 
the  election  by  the  convention,  and  replying  to  the  position  of 
Bishop  Payne,  quoting,  as  before,  the  council  at  Jerusalem  in 
justification  of  his  position.  As  a  matter  of  course  this  paper 
drew  forth  remarks,  and  Bishop  Nazrey  himself,  as  well  as 
T.  W.  Stringer,  E.  Weaver,  Bishop  Payne,  C.  Pierce  and  H.  J. 
Young  responded.  The  matter  which  had  so  vexed  the  conven- 
tion was  again  before  it,  and  upon  the  question  being  asked 
whether  the  three  delegates  had  "learned"  what  connection 
the  Church  in  Canada  desired  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the 
United  States,  and  what  participation  that  Church  might  wish 
in  the  book  concern,  a  reply  came  from  A.  R.  Green,  "Yes,  we 
learned  by  reading,  hearing  and  reflection,"  followed  by  his 
views  of  the  statement  of  the  chair.  The  chairman  then  put  the 
question  whether  the  brother  thought  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  fully 
organized,  to  which  he  replied,  "  It  was  done  at  the  General  Con- 
ference, and  also  years  ago."  This  drew  forth  another  question : 
"What  do  you  understand  by  the  term  organization?"  An 
answer  was  given  differing  in  no  ways  materially  from  what  the 
speaker  had  reiterated  many  times  before,  and  ending  with  the 
declaration  that  "  it  was  no  use  for  the  delegates  from  the  states 
to  remain  any  longer."  E.  Weaver  replied  to  the  brother,  and 
then  the  chairman  said:  "If  the  delegates  go  away  before  the 
organization  is  consummated,  complaint  will  be  made  to  the 
General  Conference  against  them.  The  resolution  under  which 
the  delegates  are  sent  here  says  that  they  are  to  meet  the  con- 


382 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


vention  in  Canada,  at  the  organization  of  the  Church,  and  learn 
in  person  what  connection  it  may  desire  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
Now  the  organization  cannot  be  completed  till  the  Bishop  elect 
shall  have  been  conducted  to  his  chair.  Nor  does  the  convention 
know  if  Bishop  Nazrey  will  accept  the  election.  Ours  is  an 
episcopal  church,  and  a  Bishop  must  be  at  its  head  to  make  it 
perfect,  so  far  as  human  action  is  concerned,  and,  therefore,  we 
maintain  that  we  cannot  consider  our  Church  fully  organized 
till  the  Bishop  accepts  the  election,  and  is  in  the  chair  as  its  pre- 
siding officer.  Till  then  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  cannot  fully  make 
known  her  desires  or  wishes  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  But  the 
delegates  seem  anxious  to  go  to  the  states  to  sow  the  seeds  of  dis- 
cord, and  diffuse  the  spirit  of  dissatisfaction,  and  thereby  make 
the  impression  that  we  are  opposed  to  the  mother  Church.  If 
they  do  this,  we  shall  be  constrained  to  make  our  defense  against 
such  a  false  impression." 

These  remarks  were  followed  by  mutual  altercations,  crimina- 
tions, recriminations  and  explanations.  The  morning  session 
of  the  fifth  day  resulted  in  very  little  actual  business,  though  it 
was  settled  that  the  limits  of  the  Annual  Conferences  should  be 
"All  Canada  East  and  West.  British  America,  and  all  other 
places  which  may  be  brought  into  this  Connection."  All  the 
forms  for  the  consecration  of  the  ministry,  for  laying  of  corner- 
stones and  consecration  of  churches,  as  found  in  the  Discipline 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  were  incorporated  into  that  of  the  B.M.  E. 
Church,  and  the  Bishop,  or  any  elder  having  pastoral  charge,  was 
empowered  to  receive  any  chapel  or  religious  people  during  the 
interval  between  the  sessions  of  Conference — their  .action  in  such 
cases  being  subject  to  review  and  confirmation  or  rejection  by  the 
Annual  Conference  ensuing. 

At  the  opening  of  the  afternoon  session,  Rev.  J.  H.  Young 
suggested  that  the  Bishops  attend  to  the  request  made  by  the 
convention  to  decide  which  of  their  number  shall  preside  over 
the  B.  Mi  E.  Church.  In  compliance  with  the  request,  the  fol- 
lowing document  was  read  by  Bishop  Payne  as  the  "Report  of 
the  Bishops  and  elders  appointed  by  resolution  of  the  General 
Conference  of  1856,  to  determine  which  of  the  Bishops  shall 
preside  over  the  B.  M.  E.  Church:" 

Whereas,  Tin-  representatives  of  the  Canadian  churches  did,  at  the 
last  General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  most  respectfully  request 
and  petition  the  said  General  Conference  to  allow  or  grant  Rev.  Willis 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  883 


Nazrey,  if  it  be  his  pleasure  to  withdraw  from  it,  to  superintend  the  Church 
in  Canada  ;  and 

Whereas,  The  said  representatives  did  reeeive  in  reply  the  following 
answer : 

"This  General  Conference  does  not  feel  authorized  to  give  one  of  its 
Bishops  to  that  portion  of  the  Connection  unsolicited  ;  therefore, 

"  Resolved,  That  when  we  shall  be  solicited  for  one  (if  before  the  next 
General  Conference),  all  our  Bishops  shall  meet,  with  three  elders  selected 
by  them,  and  decide  which  of  the  Bishops  shall  serve  in  Canada,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  wishes  of  the  Canadian  Church." 

We  say,  in  obedience  to  the  above  resolution  and  decree  of  the  General 
Conference,  and  also  the  resolution  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church,  passed  by  a 
unanimous  vote  on  Tuesday  morning,  the  3d  of  October,  1856,  that  we, 
the  undersigned,  met  in  the  church  at  Chatham.  Having  duly  considered 
the  important  question  submitted  to  us,  we  have  concluded  to  "decide" 
that  the  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey,  of  the  Bishops  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  shall 
serve  in  Canada,  in  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  the  Canadian  Church. 

[Signed]*     Daniel  A.  Payne, 
Richard  Warren, 
Thomas  Sunrise, 
Elisha  Weaver  (under protest) . 

On  motion  of  Rev.  G.  W.  Broadie,  the  following  preamble  and 
resolution  were  adopted  : 

"  Whereas,  We  have  been  hitherto  unprepared  to  show  properly  the 
relations  we  wish  to  sustain  to  the  mother  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United 
States ;  therefore, 

*'  Resolved,  That  we  now  publicly  announce  in  this  convention  that  we 
are  now  prepared  to  enter  into  a  friendly  negotiation  with  the  said  mother 
Church,  according  to  the  provisions  made  by  the  General  Conference  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church." 

This  day  the  convention  adopted  the  Discipline  of  th.e  A.  M. 
E.  Church  from  page  193  to  page  195,  with  two  or  three  amend- 
ments, relating  particularly  to  the  election  of  trustees  and  the 
duty  of  stewards.  In  the  line  of  mental  culture  the  convention 
resolved  to  publish  a  quarterly  magazine  as  soon  as  practicable, 
and  the  following  committee  was  constituted  to  draft  a  course  of 
studies  to  be  inserted  in  the  Discipline  for  the  improvement  of 
the  ministry:    W.  H.  Jones,  Bishop  D.  A.  Payne,  H.  J.  Young. 

*The  name  of  Bishop  Quinn  does  not  appear  in  this  document,  because 
he  would  not  participate  in  the  measure,  as  dictated  by  the  General  Con- 
ference, and,  therefore,  left  the  convention  and  returned  to  the  United 
States  before  his  colleagues,  the  bishops  and  the  "selected"  elders  could 
meet  to  do  as  they  had  been  instructed  by  the  General  Conference  of 
1856. 


384 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


On  the  sixth  day  the  convention  started  out  with  the  determi- 
nation to  prevent  more  bickering  over  the  ever-recurring  tend- 
ency to  revolt  against  the  proceedings,  as  manifested  by  A.  R. 
Green,  who  was  ready  to  read  another  document,  but  which  the 
house  refused  to  hear  until  the  minutes  were  read,  and  which  the 
brother  would  not  read  at  all  unless  he  could  be  heard  first. 
Bishops  Payne  and  Nazrey  both  reasoned  with  him  as  to  the 
duties  of  the  delegates,  and  at  last  the  vice-president,  Rev. 
Thomas  YV.  Stringer,  said  pointedly  that  the  delegates  had  been 
received  and  treated  with  the  courtesy  that  was  due  them  as 
representatives  of  the  mother  Church;  that  their  unkind  and 
dictatorial  spirit  had  been  borne  with  by  the  convention  because 
they  came  from  that  Church,  and  had  they  come  from  any  other 
they  would  never  have  borne  with  them.  This  settled  the 
matter. 

When  the  business  of  the  day  turned  to  the  laws,  Bishop 
Payne  suggested,  as  part  of  the  organic  law  of  the  B.  M.  E. 
Church,  and  to  be  made  the  sixth  rule  defining  and  limiting  the 
powers  of  the  General  Conference,  to  wit:  "They  shall  encourage, 
support  and  cherish  science,  philosophy,  and  the  fine  arts,  and  at 
each  meeting  examine  into  the  condition  of  these  several  depart- 
ments of  human  industry  as  they  exist  among  our  people  and 
the  surrounding  community."  On  motion  of  H.  J.  Young,  this 
article  was  unanimously  adopted.* 

The  same  party  moved  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  draft 
rules  for  the  government  of  the  book  concern,  and  Rt.  Rev. 
Willis  Nazrey,  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones,  and  C.  E.  Hatfield  wrere  ap- 
pointed. The  committee  on  preface  to  the  Discipline  were  em- 
powered to  revise  and  publish  the  Discipline.  Another  motion 
empowered  the  Annual  Conference  to  establish  missions,  form 
circuits  and  establish  stations.  At  this  point  the  brother  from 
Central  America,  Brother  Smith,  was  introduced  to  the  conven- 
tion and  gave  an  interesting  statement  of  his  labors  in  Greytown. 

*  Notwithstanding  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  convention,  the  Committee 
on  Revision  and  Publication  omitted  this  article  from  the  Discipline  of  the 
B.  M.  E.  Church.  The  chairman  of  the  committee  and  his  colleagues  were 
bound  to  the  duty  of  calling  the  attention  of  the  Bishop  and  the  Connec- 
tion to  the  fact  that  this  article,  adopted  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  the 
convention,  was  omitted.  The  omission  was  discovered  on  the  issuing  of 
the  Discipline  from  the  press.  This  was  not  done,  and  that  some  one  was 
guilty  of  usurpation  of  power  was  very  evident. 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


385 


He  said  that  if  he  went  back  as  a  colored  American  from  the 
United  States  he  could  not  obtain  that  protection  for  himself  and 
his  mission  which  was  necessary  to  make  it  successful.  He  had 
never  shown  the  Discipline  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  those  who 
constituted  the  small  society  which  he  had  collected  together, 
consisting  partly  of  English  persons  and  partly  of  colored  per- 
sons. "These  people  do  not  comprehend  the  distinction  of 
color  and  know  not  what  the  Discipline  means,  it  being  based 
upon  said  distinction."  G.  W.  Lawrence  rose  to  say,  after  the 
brother  had  finished,  that  he  went  from  New  Orleans  as  a  British 
subject  and  founded  the  first  church  that  ever  existed  of  any 
kind  in  Grey  town.  He  said  that  he  had  documents  to  prove  it. 
He  went  on  to  say  that  he  was  made  a  citizen  of  Greytown,  and 
helped  to  form  the  first  municipal  government  there.  He  after- 
wards erected  a  church  30x60  feet.  He  left  Greytown  in  1852  to 
represent  the  condition  of  things  there  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence held  in  New  York  that  year.  He  Jiad  done  so  in  a  par- 
ticular and  faithful  manner,  and  asked  aid  from  their  hands  and 
credentials  from  the  Bishops,  but  no  action  was  taken  on  the 
case.  He  had  given  Brother  Smith  letters  of  introduction  to 
the  mayor  of  Greytown,  Mr.  Martin,  the  English  Consul,  Mr. 
Green  and  others,  and  it  was  by  those  letters  that  Brother  Smith 
obtained  success.  These  letters,  he  claimed,  were  given  in  1852, 
while  at  New  Orleans.* 

After  this  episode  the  regular  business  was  opened,  and  Bishop 
Nazrey  proceeded  to  say  a  few  pertinent  words  upon  the  subject 
of  the  finances  of  the  church.  He  stated  that  "  no  government 
could  exist  without  means,  and  no  church  suffers  so  much  as 
ours  for  having  abandoned  the  lesson  which  this  truth  teaches. 
Among  us  everything  depends  upon  free-will  offerings.  We  have 
taught  the  people  that  if  they  will  they  may,  if  not  they  may 
leave  it  alone  without  incurring  any  guilt.  Hence,  our  brethren 
in  the  states  have  been  forty  years  trying  to  establish  a  book 
concern,  with  but  very  little  success.  Generally  speaking,  we 
are  poor  men ;  there  is  no  one  rich  among  the  itinerants.  The 
majority  of  us  were  thrust  into  the  ministry  at  the  very  time  we 

•At  the  request  of  Bishop  Payne,  Brother  Lawrence  brought  documents 
to  prove  himself  a  British  subject,  and  to  show  that  he  left  New  Orleans  as 
such.    He  declares  that  his  missionary  labors  were  prosecuted  as  a  British 
subject. 
25 


386 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


were  best  fitted  to  make  a  comfortable  living  for  ourselves  and 
families.  Yes,  we  were  thrust  into  it  in  the  very  bloom  of  our 
manhood."  The  first  two  years  of  his  labors  as  an  itinerant  he 
received  $104.00,  and  he  spent  $95.00  of  this  to  buy  horses  with 
which  to  serve  the  people.  "Suppose  one  of  us  should,  by  acci- 
dent, become  crippled  as  we  leave  this  house,  so  that  he  shall  be 
unable  to  take  charge  of  a  flock:  who  will  take  care  of  him? 
There  is  a  case  now  in  the  bounds  of  this  district,  and  should 
the  brother  linger  long,  what  will  become  of  him  ?  There  is 
no  provision  made  for  him.  Brother  Helmsly  laid  sick  for 
twelve  months  in  this  helpless  condition.  Now,  therefore,  while 
we  are  taking  care  of  other  things,  provide  also  for  ourselves — do 
something  by  which  our  wants  can  be  met  in  the  day  of  afflic- 
tion." There  was  a  hearty  assent  to  these  sentiments  evinced  by 
the  "Aniens"  that  came  from  many  voices.  Tbe  Bishop  also 
showed  the  inadequacy  of  the  two-cent  collections,  as  decreed  by 
the  General  Conference  of  the  states  to  sustain  the  preachers 
in  the  time  of  sickness  and  old  age.  "I  therefore  advise  you," 
said  he,  "that  we  add  to  the  preacher's  salary  a  certain  amount, 
which  the  Conference  will  demand  of  him  to  create  a  preachers' 
aid  fund,  and  require  him  to  bring  this  amount  with  him  to 
tin'  Conference."  Samuel  Brown  proposed  that  each  man  pay 
into  the  said  fund  in  proportion  to  the  amount  which  he  may 
receive  on  account  of  salary;  he  thought,  however,  that  the 
sum  ought  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  $10.00.  As  a  strong  plea 
for  the  measure  Bishop  Nazrey  stated  that  during  the  four 
years'  sickness  of  Bishop  Brown  he  had  been  to  see  him  several 
times  when  his  wife  had  informed  him  that  she  had  not  a  cent 
with  which  to  buy  tea.  Some  were  opposed  to  the  measure 
because  of  certain  evils  that  might  arise  from  the  form  which  it 
took,  and  then  the  idea  was  broached  that  the  preachers  were 
all  taxed  to  the  utmost  now,  as  well  as  others,  to  meet  certain 
necessities  and  charities.  But  the  general  sentiment  was  in 
favor  of  working  now  for  the  object,  while  they  were  well  and 
strong,  and  endeavoring  to  establish  a  fund  which  would  reflect 
credit  upon  all,  and  then,  "  instead  of  pointing  to  the  mother 
Church  as  an  example  in  this  particular,  we  shall  be  able  to  say 
to  her,  Come  and  do  as  we  are  doing."  The  result  was  that  a  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  draft  a  constitution  for  the  preachers' 
aid  society. 

The  Sabbath  which  intervened  between  the  fifth  days'  session 


St i ><i rat  10 n  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


387 


and  the  lasl  day  of  the  convention  was  the  day  upon  which 
lit.  Rev.  Willis  Nazrey  delivered  the  organization  sermon  of  the 
new  British  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  A  crowded  house  was 
present  to  hear  him,  and  a  vast  number  jammed  the  doors 
and  windows  outside,  and  lent  their  voices  to  the  choral  of  the 
whole  assembly  as  it  sang  that  glorious  hymn  of  Charles  Wesley: 

"Jesus,  the  name  high  over  all, 

In  hell,  or  earth,  or  sky  !  • 
Angels  and  men  before  it  fall, 
And  devils  fear  and  fly." 

After  this  opening  the  Bishop  offered  a  very  solemn  and  ap- 
propriate prayer,  and  then  took  his  text  from  the  whole  of  the 
first  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Church  at  Ephesus,  dwelling 
particularly  on  the  ninth  verse.  It  was  a  running  comment 
upon  this  interesting  portion  of  the  Word  of  God,  full  of  practi- 
cal thoughts,  very  suggestive,  breathing  throughout  a  deeply 
pious  and  evangelical  spirit.  The  concluding  prayer  was 
made  by  Bishop  Payne,  after  which,  on  motion  of  Dr.  M.  R. 
Delaney,  the  vast  and  delighted  multitude  requested  Bishop 
Nazrey  to  publish  his  discourse  and  to  place  a  copy  in  the  ar- 
chives of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church. 

October  6th  was  the  closing  day  of  the  convention,  which 
opened  a  little  later  than  usual.  The  different  committees  re- 
ported. That  on  the  course  of  studies  for  the  young  ministers 
reported  progress.  The  next  committee  to  report  was  that  on 
fraternal  relations  which  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  may  wish  to  sus- 
tain to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  the  participation  they  for- 
mally may  desire  to  have  in  the  book  concern  of  the  latter. 
They  reported  as  follows : 

Whereas,  The  delegates  from  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States 
withdrew  from  the  Convention  before  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  was  organized, 
to  learn  in  person  what  connection  our  Church  may  desire  with  the  A.  M. 
E.  Church  in  the  United  States,  and  what  participation  we  may  wish  in 
the  book  concern  of  that  Church  ; 

We,  your  committee  whose  duty  it  was  to  show  what  connection  the 
B.  M.  E.  Church  in  Canada  wishes  to  hold  with  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in 
the  United  States,  beg  leave  to  report  that,  in  order  to  keep  up  a  friendly 
feeling  and  interest  between  the  two  Connections,  delegates  should  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  to  meet  the  General  Conference  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  to  fully  participate  in  all  their  deliberations,  but  not  to 
vote  ;  and  that  the  same  privileges  should  be  extended  to  our  membe  rs  who 
may  meet  in  Annual  Conference;  that  all  such  delegates  shall  be  elected 


388 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


at  the  Canadian  Annual  Conference  at  the  session  previous  to  the  meeting 
of  the  General  Conference  of  the  said  A.  M.  E.  Church.  Should  any  of 
our  members  or  ministers  wish  to  remove  from  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  to  the 

A.  M.  E.  Church,  they  may  be  received  by  certificate,  with  all  the  privi- 
leges and  standing  they  hold  in  the  B.  M.  E.  Church.  On  our  part  we 
pledge  ourselves  to  keep  inviolable  all  the  above  propositions. 

We  further  suggest  that  neither  the  mother  A.  M.  E.  Church  nor  the 

B.  M.  E.  Church  receive  any  circuit  or  station  belonging  to  each  other's 
respective  Connections. 

We  relinquish  all  claims  to  the  book  concern  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
in  lieu  of  which  we  hereby  agree  to  return  all  the  monies  due  the  said 
concern  in  our  hands.  *  [Signed]  C.  C.  Pierce, 

W.  H.  Jones, 
J  as.  Harper, 
H.  J  Young, 
T.  W.  Stringer. 

The  suggestion  concerning  circuits  and  stations  was  in  har- 
mony with  the  advice  of  Bishop  Payne  on  the  previous  day's 
session,  when  Brother  Lawrence  contended  that  the  Central 
American  Mission  should  be  placed  under  the  care  of  the  B.  M. 
E.  Church.  He  said  that  whatever  was  done  in  relation  to  that 
mission,  he  advised  it  to  be  done  in  such  a  way  that  would  not 
conflict  with  the  claims  of  the  Missouri  Conference  of  the  A.  M. 
E.  Church,  inasmuch  as  it  was  planted  by  that  body. 

A  committee  to  draft  a  constitution  to  govern  the  book  con- 
cern of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  also  reported.  At  the  suggestion  of 
Bishop  Payne,  the  motion  which  was  passed  a  few  days  previous 
was  reconsidered  and  amended,  so  as  to  give  power  to  the  general 
book  steward  or  editor  to  publish  a  magazine,  monthly  if  prac- 
ticable, and  also  a  weekly  paper  whenever  the  necessary  capital 
can  be  created  to  sustain  it.  The  appointment  of  the  book 
committee  was  postponed  till  the  Bishop  had  read  the  annual 
stationing  of  the  itinerants.  The  design  and  motto  of  the 
episcopal  seal  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  was  adopted,  with  the 
exception  of  the  denominational  name,  which  is  to  be  supplanted 
by  the  title  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church.  The  publishing  committee 
was  ordered  to  have  the  seal  manufactured.  A  rule  was  also 
adopted  to  make  the  local  preachers  or  laymen  who  might  be 
members  of  the  book  committee  liable  to  be  tried  in  the  same 
courts  as  the  traveling  preachers. 

The  first  General  Conference  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church  was  ap- 

*The  modified  report  of  the  minority  may  be  seen  in  the  printed  min- 
utes of  the  convention,  page  9. 


Separation  From  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


BS9 


pointed  to  meet  in  the  city  of  Toronto,  on  the  1st  day  of  Sep- 
tember, I860.  The  closing  business  was  quickly  dispatched.  A 
committee  was  appointed,  on  Bishop  Payne's  suggestion,  to  draft 
a  constitution  to  govern  a  Literary  and  historical  society.  It  con- 
sisted of  Bishops  Payne  and  Nazrey  and  Brother  Harper.  The 
following  rule  was  incorporated  in  the  Discipline:  "Any  preach- 
er or  exhorter  having  received  license  to  preach  or  exhort,  or 
coming  before  the  Quarterly  Conference  for  renewal  of  his  license, 
if,  on  examination,  it  is  found  that  he  is  not  useful,  or  that  he 
lias  not  attended  the  Sabbath-school,  nor  made  proficiency  in  the 
course  of  studies  laid  down  for  local  preachers  in  the  said  Book 
of  Discipline,  the  said  Quarterly  Conference  shall  have  power  to 
suspend  the  renewal  of  the  license  till  he  shall  have  complied 
with  the  said  requirements.1'  Finally,  all  the  minutes  on  Disci- 
pline were  adopted,  and  the  convention  joined  in  singing  the 
hymn, 

"  Together  let  us  sweetly  live,"  etc., 

after  which  the  benediction  was  pronounced  by  the  vice-presi- 
dent, and  the  convention  was  declared  adjourned  sine  die. 

Thus  terminated  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  important 
conventions  ever  held  by  the  descendants  of  Africa  on  the 
American  continent.  Its  historic  value  and  influence  upon  this 
injured  people  and  upon  the  world  can  only  be  realized  a  century 
hence.  Let  it  never  be  forgotten  that  the  men  who  demanded 
this  distinct,  separate  and  independent  organization  were  all 
emigrants  from  the  United  States.  Several  had  been  slaves,  and 
had  fled  to  Canada  to  secure  their  freedom.  Some  were  free 
born,  but  had  emigrated  to  escape  the  persecutions  of  the  u  Fugi- 
tive Slave  Law."  Some  went  to  secure  land  and  have  a  home, 
which  could  not  be  obtained  in  the  United  States.  They  rejected 
the  title,  "African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,"  because,  they 
said,  first,  that  it  made  distinctions  in  the  British  Province  not 
cognizable  by  British  law,  and  because  there  were  at  that  time 
about  forty  colored  men  in  the  Buxton  settlement  and  neigh- 
borhood who  had  white  wives,  and  the  adoption  of  that  title 
would  cut  off"  from  membership  every  one  of  these  white  women 
because  they  were  not  Africans.  These  reasons  were  emphasized 
especially  by  Elder  William  H.  Jones,  who  was  evidently  the 
master  mind  in  the  Province  of  Canada,  and  one  who  was  the 
leading  spirit  in  this  convention,  and  who  subsequently  con- 


390 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


trolled  the  movements  of  the  B.  M.  E.  Church,  for  he  wielded  an 
influence  in  it  second  only  to  that  of  Bishop  Xazrey. 

The  convention  having  closed,  the  Conference  convened  on 
the  morning  of  October  7th,  18.5(5,  in  the  city  of  Toronto,  and 
after  some  informal  deliberations  it  was  opened  with  the  usual 
exercises  of  reading  the  Scripture,  singing  and  prayer.  Then  the 
Conference  requested  Bishop  Payne  to  conduct  Bishop  Xazrey  to 
the  chair,  which  he  did,  addressing  him  and  the  brethren  in  a 
brief  and  suitable  manner. 

Bishop  Xazrey  replied  as  follows: 

As  the  providence  of  God  has  brought  us  to  this  hour,  and  in  view  of 
the  labors  I  am  about  to  enter  upon,  and  of  my  responsibility  in  the  Judg- 
ment Day,  I  render  to  my  brethren  my  heartfelt  thanks  for  the  confidence 
placed  in  me,  as  it  manifests  itself,  by  placing  me  at  the  head  of  their 
affairs.  I  therefore  pledge  myself  to  endeavor  to  diligently  and  honestly 
exercise  my  office  independently  of  human  bias,  but  dependency  upon 
God — to  exercise  it  with  that  independence  of  man  which  belongs  to  the 
character  and  office  of  an  ambassador  of  Christ,  so  that  I  may  be  able  to  • 
accomplish  the  greatest  possible  good  for  the  cause  of  Christ. 

Dear  brethren,  I  say  again,  I  return  you  my  sincere  thanks  and  gratitude 
for  the  confidence  you  have  placed  in  me.  I  am  with  you  in  sorrow  and 
in  joy,  in  prosperity  and  in  adversity.  Whenever  you  see  a  wrong  act  in 
me,  tell  me  kindly  of  it,  and  I  shall  be  grateful  for  your  faith  fulness,  and 
shall  manifest  my  gratitude  by  correcting  it.  Pray  that  God  may  assist  me 
in  all  my  efforts  to  labor  for  your  good,  for  the  good  of  his  Church,  for  the 
good  of  all  mankind,  in  order  that  I  may  do  so  with  success. 

As  it  regards  you,  my  colleague,  God  grant  that  our  minds  may  always 
remain  one  in  all  our  views  and  efforts  to  promote  the  cause  of  Christ  and 
the  well-being  of  our  downtrodden  race  and  of  our  common  humanity. 

The  Bishop's  remarks  were  frequently  indorsed  by  hearty 
"Aniens"  from  the  brethren.  He  then  proceeded  formally  to 
open  the  Conference  by  reading  Matthew  v.  1-17.  He  then  an- 
nounced the  hymn,  and  soon  the  regular  business  was  opened. 
The  Rev.  Samuel  Brown,  who  had  presided  over  the  deliberations 
of  the  convention  with  so  much  dignity,  was  the  oldest  preacher 
in  the  province,  and  in  view  of  this  and  his  age  as  well,  at  the 
suggestion  of  Bishop  Xazrey,  and  the  unanimous  suffrage  of  the 
brethren,  he  was  invited  to  a  seat  by  the  side  of  the  chairman 
during  the  session  of  Conference. 

The  Conference  ordered  a  mission  to  be  opened  in  Central 
America,  and,  in  view  of  the  reasons  brought  forth  by  Brother 
Benjamin  Smith  for  desiring  association  of  the  religious  society 
which  he  had  gathered  in  that  country  with  the  B.  M.  E.  Church 


Separation  Prom  the  A.  M.  K.  Church. 


:v.)\ 


in  preference  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States,  es- 
pecially because  of  the  protection  which  the  British  government 
affords,  it  was  resolved  "That  we  receive  Brother  Smith  and'the 
people  collected  by  him  into  the  itinerancy,  provided  he  shall 
sustain  an  examination."  TheCommittee  on  Itinerancy  reported 
in  favor  of  receiving  Brother  Smith,  and  Bishop  Nazrey  pro- 
ceeded to  do  so  according  to  the  Discipline,  and  the  brother 
was  soon  after  elected  to  the  deaconate  by  a  unanimous  vote,  his 
ordination  taking  place  after  adjournment. 

The  Grand  River  appointment  was  taken  from  the  Branford 
Circuit  and  attached  to  Hamilton  Station.  The  committee's  re- 
port upon  a  constitution  for  a  literary  and  historical  society  was 
adopted,  and  the  following  officers  were  elected:  Rt.  Rev.  Willis 
Nazrey,  president;  Rev.  James  Harper,  vice-president;  Rev. 
George  Broadie,  secretary;  Thomas  W.  Stringer,  treasurer;  and 
Rev.  Broadie,  librarian;  with  an  executive  committee  composed 
of  Rev.  W.  H.  Jones,  C.  H.  Price,  H.  J.  Young,  Benj.  Steward 
and  Mr.  Madison  Bell. 

The  news  of  the  death  of  Brother  Jeremiah  Taylor  having 
reached  the  convention  when  in  session,  the  Conference  paid 
tribute  to  his  memory  by  a  sermon,  delivered  by  Rev.  Samuel 
Brown.  Brother  Taylor  began  his  labors  as  a  minister  of  the  A. 
M.  E.  Church  in  Canada,  nearly  twenty  years  before.  He  was 
then  without  education,  knowing  not  so  much  as  the  alphabet ; 
but  he  did  not  care  for  that.  He  had  religion  in  his  heart,  and 
that  was  enough  for  him,  for  "by  the  Holy  Ghost  he  could  tear 
up  all  the  sinners  of  the  province."  He  did  not,  could  not,  and 
would  not  learn  till  urged  by  his  more  intelligent  and  noble 
wife,  who  became  his  teacher  soon  after  she  became  his  wife,  and 
succeeded  in  teaching  him  to  read  the  Bible,  hymn-book  and 
Discipline.  Brother  Taylor  was  indefatigable  in  his  labors,  re- 
garding neither  heat  nor  cold,  hail,  rain  nor  snow,  and  went 
to  the  execution  of  his  Master's  work,  paid  or  not  paid.  His 
moral  character,  too,  was  of  the  highest  order;  neither  wicked 
men  nor  devils  could  corrupt  him.  All  this  and  more  was  said 
in  this  remarkable  discourse  by  the  aged  brother,  and  when  it 
was  ended  the  Conference  resumed  its  business. 

The  Pittsburg  Book  Publishing  Committee'  appointed  by  the 
Conference  agreed  to  hold  its  next  session  in  St.  Catherine's. 
Before  reading  the  appointments  the  Bishop  spoke  as  follows: 
"Suffer  me  to  deal  plainly  with  you.    Some  of  us  join  the  itin- 


392 


History  of  the  A.  M.  JE.  Church. 


erancy  with  gladness.  When  we  are  buoyant  with  hope  and 
without  experience,  we  are  willing  to  be  sent  anywhere ;  but  after  a 
year  or  two  we  hear  of  certain  pleasant  appointments,  where  the 
people  value  the  Gospel  with  its  precious  privileges  and  give  it, 
therefore,  a  liberal  support:  then  we  wish  to  go  there,  and  if  we 
are  not  sent  there  we  become  angry.  I  shall  always  feel  it  my 
duty  to  please  God  first ;  then,  if  I  fail  to  please  the  preachers 
and  the  people,  I  will  leave  them  and  their  fault-finding  to  God, 
who  knows  where  and  when  to  correct  every  error  and  every 
evil.  Let  me  say  another  word  to  the  people;  it  is  this:  If  they 
pay  but  six  cents  a  year  they  want  the  best  preachers  sent  to 
them,  and  they  will  be  displeased  if  this  is  not  done,  as  though 
they  had  given  thousands  to  support  the  ministry  and  the  insti- 
tutions of  the  Church.  This  is  all  wrong.  If  people  want  the 
ablest  of  men  they  should  be  willing  to  give  them  an  ample 
support,  as  others  do,  for  the  laborer  is  worthy  of  his  hire.  The 
duty  of  the  people  is  to  support  the  ministry.  This  is  biblical 
and  just — all  that  is  said  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding.  Then, 
there  are  some  of  our  preachers  who  have  formed  such  a  habit  of 
gadding  that  when  they  are  sent  to  the  charge  of  a  circuit  or 
station  they  will  not  remain  faithful  to  their  trust.  Leaving  the 
flock  in  the  hands  of  some  local  preacher,  they  run  hither  and 
thither,  and  are  sometimes  absent  for  one,  two,  ok  three  months. 
This  is  all  wrong,  and  the  Conference  ought  to  put  a  stop  to  this 
bad  habit.  Such  men  ought  to  be  disciplined  for  it.  I  have 
held  different  charges  for  twelve  years,  and  did  not  absent  myself 
but  two  Sundays  from  them.  Brethren,  be  faithful;  teach  the 
people,  do  them  good,  and  God  will  bless  you." 

The  appointments  were  then  read,  and,  with  the  hymn  and 
benediction  following,  the  first  session  of  the  Canadian  Confer- 
ence of  the  British  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  closed. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


REVIEW  OF  EDUCATION  TO  1856. 

Founders  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  — Daniel  Coker  the  Most  Intellectual  of 
the  Sixteen— English,  American  and  African  Methodism — A  Contrast — 
Ohio  Annual  Conference  First  to  Speak  on  Education  in  1833— A  Voice 
Nine  Years  Later— D.  A.  Payne's  "Epistles" — Bishop  Morris  Brown's 
Advice — First  Educational  Convention  in  1845— Wilberforce  University 
Founded  in  1856 — Bishop  Payne's  First  Connection  with  It — The  Hand 
of  God — Dawn  at  Hand. 

THE  founders  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
were  all  unlearned  men.  The  most  intelligent  of  the  six- 
teen who  organized  the  Connection  was  Daniel  Coker,  at 
that  time  a  schoolmaster  in  the  city  of  Baltimore.  He  was  suf- 
ficiently educated  to  publish  a  small  pamphlet  purporting  to  be 
a  "  Dialogue  between  a  Virginian  and  an  African  minister, 
written  by  Rev.  Daniel  Coker,  a  descendant  of  Africa,  minister 
of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Baltimore.  Hum- 
bly dedicated  to  the  people  of  color  in  the  United  States  of 
America.  Baltimore:  Printed  by  Benjamin  Edes  for  Joseph 
James.  1810."  Such  is  the  reading  of  the  title  page  copied 
from  the  tattered  little  pamphlet.  * 

In  1818  there  was  found  no  one  in  the  Baltimore  Annual  Con- 
ference competent  to  act  as  secretary;  therefore,  the  youthful 
son  of  Bishop  Allen,  a  lad  of  fourteen  years,  was  constituted 
secretary.  He  filled  this  office  for  two  consecutive  years.  This 
circumstance  is  a  proof  of  the  statement  that  the  ministry  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  was,  at  the  beginning  of  its  career,  an  unlearned 
body;  and  also  of  the  fact  that  Daniel  Coker,  the  most  intelli- 
gent, was  made  so  through  the  sympathy  of  his  master's  stubborn 
son — not  by  a  regular  course  of  instruction,  but  by  a  bit  now  and 
then,  going  and  returning  from  school. 

In  the  Philadelphia  Conference  the  most  intelligent  and  best 
trained  intellect  was  Joseph  M.  Corr,  who  did  not  start  with  the 
Connection,  but  entered  it  as  a  local  preacher  some  time  between 
1820  and  1825.  He  appears  as  secretary  of  the  Baltimore  Con- 
ference in  1826.    He  was  trained  in  Charleston,  S.  C,  either  in 


*  A  manuscript  copy  of  this  little  work  is  in  the  hands  of  the  writer. 

(  393  ) 


£94 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


the  common  schools  of  Mr.  Thomas  L.  Bonneau,  or  at  the  school 
of  Mr.  Mins.  The  former  was  a  man  of  mixed  blood,  the  latter 
a  white  West  Indian.  In  the  schools  managed  by  these  two 
schoolmasters  of  Charleston,  8.  C,  nothing  but  arithmetic  as  far 
as  the  "rule  of  three,"  reading,  writing  and  spelling  was  taught. 

Joseph  Cox,  who  appeared  at  the  Baltimore  Conference  in  1819, 
was  also  a  local  preacher  endowed  by  nature  with  a  powerful  in- 
tellect as  a  natural  orator  and  logician,  with  about  as  much  as  a 
primary  school  education;  but  he  was  well  read.  lie  lived  up  to 
1843-44,  having  no  superior  in  the  itinerant  ranks  as  an  ex- 
pounder of  the  Holy  Word  of  God. 

English  Methodism  under  John  and  Charles  Wesley  began  its 
career  with  founding  a  school  of  learning  for  the  sons  of  its 
preachers,  and  one  for  the  children  of  poor  colliers  f  1739-48).* 
Subsequently  other  institutions  for  higher  education  were  origi- 
nated. So  also  did  American  Methodism  commence  its  career 
with  planning  and  executing  in  behalf  of  education. f 

Not  so  with  African  Methodism  in  America,  because  Allen  and 
his  coadjutors  were  illiterate  men.  They  founded  no  institution 
of  learning,  and  there  is  no  trace  of  a  thought  in  their  minds 
about  a  school  of  learning.  The  reason  of  this  difference 
between  the  beginnings  of  English  Methodism,  American  Meth- 
odism and  African  Methodism  in  the  United  States  is  seen  in 
the  fact  that  the  founding  of  schools  of  learning  is  a  result  of 
education.  It  does  not  proceed,  but  it  follows  in  the  wake  of  edu- 
cation. What  is  not  in  a  man  cannot  be  drawn  out  of  him. 
Therefore,  it  was  not  until  1833  that  we  hear  the  first  voice  speak- 
ing out  on  the  subject.  It  was  in  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference 
of  that  date,  during  its  session  in  Pittsburg,  Pa.  It  was  at  that 
time  the  youngest  of  the  Conferences.  Its  sentiments  are  re- 
corded in  the  following  resolution-  : 

Resolved,  1st.  As  the  sense  of  this  house,  that  common  schools,  Sunday- 
schools  and  temperance  societies  are  of  the  highest  importance  to  all  peo- 
ple, but  more  especially  to  our  people. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  every  member  of  this  Confer- 
ence to  do  all  in  his  power  to  promote  and  establish  these  useful  institu- 
tions among  our  people. 

A  Hundred  Years  of  Methodism,  by  Bishop  Simpson,  pp.  31,  32  and 
252.    Stephens'  History  of  Methodism,  Vol.  I.,  p.  214. 

TSee  A  Hundred  Years  of  Methodism,  p,  253.  Also  Stephens'  History 
of  Methodism,  Vol.  I.,  p.  214. 


Review  of  Education  to  1866. 


Nine  years  Bubsequenl  to  this  we  hear  another  voice  speaking 
out  distinctly  in  behalf  of  education.  It  was  that  of  the  Balti- 
more Conference,  which  was  opened  iu  the  city  of  Baltimore  on 
the  'I'ld  of  May.  On  the  1st  of  May  the  following  preamble  and 
resolutions  were  discussed  and  adopted: 

Whereas,  The  great  literary  advantages  that  the  rising  generation 
enjoys  requires  more  than  ordinary  intelligence  in  the  ministry  that  may 
be  called  to  instruct  them  ;  and 

Whereas,  Our  excellent  Discipline  cannot  be  fully  executed,  nor  our 
present  plan  of  improvement  fully  consummated,  without  an  intelligent 
ministry  ;  and,  still  more, 

Whereas,  The  unerring  Word  of  God  requires  that  "  the  priest's  lips 
should  keep  knowledge,  and  they  (the  people)  should  seek  the  law  at  his 
mouth,  for  he  is  the  messenger  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts  ;  "  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  we,  the  elders  and  deacons  of  the  Connection,  will 
from  henceforth  make  use  of  all  the  means  in  our  power  to  cultivate  our 
minds  and  increase  our  store  of  knowledge. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  we  recommend  to  all  our  elders  and  deacons,  licensed 
preachers  and  exhorters,  the  diligent  and  indefatigable  study  of  the  fol- 
lowing branches  of  useful  knowledge,  viz.:  English  grammar,  geography, 
arithmetic,  history,  modern  history,  ecclesiastical  history,  natural  and 
revealed  theology. 

The  preamble  and  resolutions  were  -expanded  and  carried  to 
the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference,  as  we  have  seen,  which  met 
in  Philadelphia  on  the  20th  of  May,  1843,  and  finished  its  delib- 
erations on  the  31st. 

We  have  also  seen  the  expansion  of  the  Baltimore  resolutions 
into  the  following: 

Inasmuch  as,  The  light  of  science  and  literature  is  pervading  every  de- 
partment of  society,  and  the  rising  generation  will  be  prepared  to  enter 
upon  the  stage  of  action  with  advantages  far  beyond  what  we  have  ever 
enjoyed ;  and  moreover, 

Inasmuch  as,  The  spirit  of  the  Bible,  with  its  letter,  together  with  an 
excellent  Discipline,  enjoins  upon  us  ministers  the  duty  of  study ;  there- 
fore, 

Resolved,  That  we  recommend  the  following  course  of  studies  to  be  pur- 
sued by  our  traveling  and  local  preachers,  viz. : 

First  Year. — The  Bible,  Discipline,  Smith's  English  Grammar,  Mitchell's 
Geography,  and  Bishop  Emory's  Questions. 

Second  Year. — Kollin's  Ancient  History  and  Mosheim's  Church  History. 

Third  Year. — Paley's  Natural  Theology  and  Schumacher's  Popular  The- 
ology. 

Fourth  Year. — Butler's  Analogy,  Neander's  History  of  the  Christian 
Religion,  and  Paley's  Evidences  of  Christianity. 


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History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference  did  not  stop  at  the  adop- 
tion of  this  curriculum.  It  took  another  step  in  the  right  direc- 
tion by  passing  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  the  above  recommendation  be  preserved  and  presented 
to  the  next  General  Conference  by  the  delegates  of  this  district. 

At  this  the  opponents  of  an  educated  ministry  became  alarmed, 
and  resolved,  it'  possible,  to  prevent  its  adoption  by  the  General 
Conference  of  1844,  so  that  the  fire  was  kindled;  hut  the  epistles 
on  the  education  of  the  ministry  (of  which  there  were  five), 
written  between  June,  1843,  and  May,  1844,  inflamed  it,  and 
threatened  to  consume  the  lender  of  the  educational  movement. 
It  was  said  by  one  that  these  epistles  were  "full  of  absurdity," 
"  Infidels  can  do  no  more,"  and  the  statements  of  the  fourth  of 
these  epistles  were  branded  as  "  Infidelity  in  its  rankest  form." 
Others  who  could  not  handle  the  pen,  or  had  not  the  courage  to 
appear  in  the  columns  of  the  church  organ  {The  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  Magazine),  privately  called  him  "a  devil."  An- 
other writer  charged  the  author  of  the  "epistles"  with  branding 
the  ministry  with  infamy,  and  of  "reckless  slander  on  the  gen- 
eral character  of  the  Connection."  So  intense  was  the  feeling 
expressed  in  private  circles  against  the  "epistles"  on  the  educa- 
tion of  the  ministry,  that  the  editor  of  the  magazine  said,  "that 
great  fear  is  entertained  by  some  that  if  the  measures  proposed 
be  adopted  by  the  General  Conference,  discord  and  dissolution 
will  necessarily  take  place  in  the  Church  between  the  ignorant 
and  intelligent  portions  of  it."  The  leader  of  the  educational 
measures  became  alarmed,  and  resolved  not  to  attend  the  Gen- 
eral Conference,  because  he  did  not  wish  to  breed  "  discord," 
much  less  to  produce  the  "dissolution"  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
So  he  tendered  his  resignation  to  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  the  senior 
bishop  at  the  time,  who  refused  to  receive  the  resignation,  and 
said  "  Son,  that  is  the  very  thing  they  want.  They  don't  want 
you  to  be  at  the  General  Conference;  so  you  must  go."  In  obe- 
dience to  the  advice  and  order  of  the  Bishop,  he  went  at  the  head 
of  the  delegation.  These  were  nine  in  number :  Rev.  Joseph  Cox, 
of  Philadelphia,  Pa.;*  Rev.  Daniel  A.  Payne,  Philadelphia.  Pa.; 
Rev.  David  Ware,  Philadelphia,  Pa.;  Rev.  Stephen  Smith,  Phila- 

*Rev.  Joseph  Cox  died  before  the  Conference  year  expired,  and  the 
next  on  the  list  became  the  leader.  These  nine  were  called  delegates,  be- 
cause they  were  local  preachers  who  represented  the  laity. 


Review  of  Education  to  1866. 


397 


delphia,  Pa.;  Rev.  Leven  Tillmon,  Philadelphia,  Pa.;  Rev.  Shad- 
rack  Bassett,  Trenton,  N.  J.;  Rev.  Aaron  Johnson,  Burlington, 
N.  J.;  Rev.  Robert  Collins,  Bucks'  County,  Pa.;  Rev.  Jeremiah 
Miller,  West  Chester,  Pa. 

The  particulars  of  the  discussion  in  the  General  Conference  of 
1844,  and  its  adoption  of  a  course  of  studies  for  the  improvement 
of  our  ministry,  have  already  been  given. 

In  1845  we  have,  as  we  have  seen  in  previous  pages,  another 
series  of  communications  on  the  education  of  the  ministry,  en- 
titled "Essays  on  the  Education  of  the  Ministry."  These  sof- 
tened down  the  open  opposition  to  the  all-important  question  till 
the  General  Conference  of  1848.  In  1845,  at  the  instance  of  the 
Baltimore  Annual  Conference,  the  first  educational  convention 
was  called.  It  was  held'  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  Several 
days  were  devoted  to  considering  various  plans  for  promoting  the 
good  work  of  education  among  the  colored  race  of  the  United 
States  in  general,  but  chiefly  in  the  Connection  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  The  words  and  spirit  of  the  call  are  shown  in  the  fol- 
lowing preamble : 

Whereas,  The  sacred  cause  of  education  is  of  such  vital  importance  to 
the  interests  of  the  Church  in  particular  and  to  the  world  in  general,  that 
instead  of  being  contented  with  what  little  we  have  done,  we  feel  it  our 
duty  to  make  new  and  greater  efforts  to  advance  its  cause  among  us  in  such 
a  way  as  will  result  in  a  general  diffusion  of  its  blessings  among  our  be- 
nighted race ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  this  committee  shall  be  composed  of  seven  members  of 
our  Church,  viz.:  four  of  the  itinerant  preachers  and  three  of  the  laity. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  this  preamble  and  these  resolutions  be  sent  to 
each  Annual  Conference  for  their  adoption. 

Daniel  A.  Payne, 
Henry  C.  Turner, 
Thomas  W.  Henry, 
Adam  S.  Driver, 
James  A.  Shorter, 
John  Henson, 
Daniel  W.  Moore. 

In  the  discussion  opposite  views  and  measures  were  advanced. 
Some  favored  the  organization  of  an  educational  association  to 
raise  funds  for  educating  young  men  for  our  ministry ;  others 
favored  the  idea  of  founding  a  collegiate  institution.  The  former 
presented  as  arguments  in  favor  of  an  educational  association  : 
(a.)  The  fact  that  the  great  want  of  our  Church  was  educated 


398 


Hidory  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


men.  (h.)  That  there  were  then  at  least  three  educational  insti- 
tutions of  learning  accessible  to  colored* students,  and,  therefore, 
the  pressing  want  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  was  not  a  college,  but 
educated  men  to  lead  on  its  varied  interests,  (c.)  That  it  was 
possible  by  perseverance  and  unity  to  raise  means  sufficient  to 
keep  at  least  a  half  dozen  young  men  every  year  at  some  one 
college,  but  that  all  our  efforts  and  means  combined  were  inade- 
quate to  the  founding  and  support  of  a  single  college. 

The  opposition  maintained  that  we  were  adequate  to  the  found- 
ing and  support  of  a  college.  The  two  parties  became  set,  and  so 
violent  was  their  opposition  to  each  other,  that  at  one  time  the 
convention  was  in  danger  of  being  broken  up  in  confusion  with- 
out accomplishing  anything  at  all.  Therefore,  a  compromise  was 
made  by  the  adoption  of  both  plans — that  is  to  say,  the  conven- 
tion resolved  to  organize  an  educational  association  to  educate 
young  men  for  the  ministry;  also,  to  enter  into  ways  and  means 
to  found  an  institution  of  learning  in  the  West.  Then  there 
arose  another  faction  contending  there  should  be  one  in  the  East, 
also. 

Finally,  all  three  propositions  were  adopted.  The  society  was 
organized  on  the  spot,  and  the  convention  adjourned.  Each  party 
resolved  to  prosecute  its  favorite  scheme.  But  for  lack  of  unity 
in  purpose  and  oneness  in  action,  and  because  we  were  all  too  poor 
to  assume  individual  responsibility,  the  project  was  abandoned. 
0,  ignorance!  O,  disunion!  Ye  did  curse  and  destroy  Carthage; 
ye  can  also  curse  and  destroy  the  African  M.  E.  Church.  Not 
the  Christian  Church;  no,  never!  because  that  is  for  humanity; 
but  the  African  M.  E.  Church,  because  that  stands  for  a  single 
race.  The  races  perish ;  sometimes  they  become  scattered  to  the 
four  corners  of  the  earth,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Jews.  They  are 
without  nationality,  but  scattered  among  all  nations.  Humanity 
consists  of  all  nations  and  of  all  races.  She  embraces  every 
human  being,  the  most  degraded  as  well  as  the  most  exalted; 
but  humanity  can  neither  perish  nor  be  scattered  to  the  four 
corners  of  the  earth,  because  every  spot  of  the  earth  is  hers,  and 
shall  be  in  her  possession  till  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth 
be  brought  into  being. 

The  educational  convention  of  which  we  have  just  written, 
and  of  which  we  have  spoken  elsewhere,  was  opened  on  the  30th 
of  October,  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  This  convention  repre- 
sented the  Eastern  Conferences,  viz.:  Baltimore,  Philadelphia 


Review  of  Education  to  1856. 


399 


and  New  York.  But  it  has  been  seen  that  the  Ohio  Annual 
Conference  had  convened  in  the  city  of  Columbus,  0.,  on  the 
18th  of  September,  L845,  and  heard  a  report  from  a  committee 
of  three,  which  had  been  appointed  in  the  autumn  of  1844 
to  selecl  a  tract  of  land  for  the  "Manual  Labor  Plan,"  about 
fourteen  miles  southwest  of  Columbus,  from  which  two  historical 
facts  can  be  seen  :  First,  that  the  influence  of  the  action  of  the 
General  Conference  of  1844  on  the  subject  of  education  took  im- 
mediate cllcct ;  second,  that  in  her  efforts  for  the  founding  of  an 
institution  of  learning  Ohio  led  the  van.  The  institution  was 
called  Union  Seminary.  It  did  not  succeed.  Much  time  was 
spent  in  collecting  funds  to  buy  the  land  (one  hundred  and 
eighty  acres,  more  or  less),  and  to  erect  a  comparatively  small 
frame  building  upon  it.  A  primary  school  was  kept  up  for  sev- 
eral years,  but  it  was  such  a  school  as  no  intelligent  parent  would 
send  a  child  from  Columbus,  0.,  fourteen  miles  distant,  to  at- 
tend, because  better  schools,  supported  by  state  funds,  were  at 
their  command  and  at  their  threshold  in  all  the  large  towns  of 
Ohio.  This  institution  called  Union  Seminary  lingered  till 
Wilberforce  became  the  property  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  when, 
by  a  vote  of  the  Ohio  Annual  Conference  it  was  abolished, 
and  the  property  ordered  to  be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  Wilberforce 
University.  But  the  agents  appointed  to  effect  the  sale  allowed 
the  one  hundred  and  eighty  acres  to  slip  through  their  hands 
with  but  little  profit  to  Wilberforce.  :'  The  Lord  reigneth  in  the 
heavens  and  in  the  earth."  The  former  truth  is  admitted  by  all 
thoughtful  men,  but  comparatively  few,  even  of  professing 
Christians,  see  the  Almighty  hand  in  the  ordinary  affairs  of  men. 

The  movements  of  the  M.  E.  Church  on  the  subject  of  general 
secular  education  for  the  colored  people  of  the  United  States, 
and  of  higher  education  for  those  of  the  West,  seemed  to  have 
been  simultaneous  with  the  aspirations  and  longing  after  intel- 
lectual and  moral,  as  well  as  religious,  development  on  the  part 
of  the  master  minds  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church;  for,  in  1853,  a 
committee  was  appointed  by  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the 
M.  E.  Church  to  inquire  into  and  report  to  the  next  session 
of  the  Conference  "  what  can  best  be  done  to  promote  the  welfare 
of  the  people  of  color  among  us."  In  1854  the  said  committee 
made  an  elaborate  report  on  the  subject,  and  recommended 
the  establishment  of  one  literary  institution  of  a  high  order  in 
the  West  for  the  more  effectual  training  of  distinguished  useful- 


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History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


ness;  but  especially  to  prepare  a  sufficient  number  of  teachers, 
male  and  female,  to  supply  their  schools  with  competent  and 
well-trained  teachers,  wherever  colored  teachers  may  be  needed. 
This  report  went  on  to  say  "there  is  a  great  lack  of  well  qualified 
ministers  and  teachers  among  the  colored  people,  and  we  can 
think  of  no  better  plan  than  this  to  supply  the  lamentable  de- 
ficiency. It  is  probable  the  number  of  colored  people  in  our 
midst  will  greatly  increase,  hence  the  greater  necessity  of  increas- 
ing the  number  of  intelligent  and  pious  ministers  and  teachers 
to  educate  and  train  the  race  in  a  proper  manner."  The  labors 
of  the  committee,  as  we  have  shown  elsewhere,  resulted  in 
the  founding  of  Wilberforce  University  in  1856. 

Bishop  Daniel  A.  Payne  had  traversed  the  state  of  Ohio  in  the 
autumn  of  1855  in  search  of  some  country  town  where  he  could 
find  a  good  Bchool,  surrounded  by  the  best  moral  and  religious 
influences,  in  which  he  could  place  his  step-children  to  be  in- 
structed and  trained  for  usefelness  in  the  present  life,  and  for 
the  blessedness  of  the  life  which  is  to  come,  and  the  associations 
which  constitute  the  sinless  company  of  heaven.  The  Rev. 
John  F.  Right  and  Rev.  Mansfield  French,  the  accredited  agents 
of  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
having  heard  of  his  movements,  informed  him  that  they  believed 
they  could  supply  his  needs  at  Tawawa  Springs,  about  three  and  a 
half  miles  from  Xenia.in  Greene  county,  Ohio.  They  invited  him 
to  go  and  see  the  beautiful  location,  and  join  them  in  founding 
the  contemplated  institution  of  learning,  because  they  believed  it 
was  the  very  place  and  the  very^ institution  where  his  children 
could  be  trained  under  the  best  moral  and  religious  influences. 
The  invitation  was  accepted,  and,  in  company  with  Rev.  Mans- 
field French  and  his  enthusiastic  wife,  Bishop  Payne  visited 
Tawawa  Springs,  selected  the  most  convenient  cottage  within 
the  campus,  and  therein  moved  his  family,  July,  1856. 
Prompted  by  similar  motives,  Elder  James  A.  Shorter  (subse- 
quently Bishop  Shorter)  moved  his  family,  embracing  five 
children,  from  Baltimore  to  Wilberforce. 

It  was  during  the  management  of  Wilberforce  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  that  Rev.  Wm.  H. 
Hunter,  D.  D.,  and  Rev.  Richard  H.  Cain  received  their  training. 
The  former  was  the  sur-eessful  manager  of  our  book  concern  from 
1872  to  1876,  and  Dr.  R.  H.  Cain  was  elected  to  the  bishopric  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  1880. 


Review  of  Education  to  1850. 


401 


These  facts  already  show  that  the  hand  of  God  was  leading 
these  two  branches  of  the  Methodist  family  in  the  same  direction 
at  the  same  time  for  the  accomplishment  of  the  same  great  end — 
the  Christian  education  of  a  race — a  race  enslaved  and  ostra- 
cised by  Christians  in  a  so-called  Christian  land,  and  that,  too, 
in- the  name  of  Christianity.  The  clouds  were  blackening,  the 
darkness  was  growing  deeper  and  deeper,  and  yet  the  dawn  of 
day  was  just  at  hand. 
20 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 


A  REVIEW  OF  THE  FIRST  FOUR  DECADES. 

Events  of  1856— Reports  from  Conferences  upon  the  Subject  of  Education 
— A  Comparison — The  Episcopal  Fields  of  Labor  to  1860— Visit  of  Rev. 
Mansfield  French  to  the  Ohio  Conference  of  1856— Contemporaneous 
Bishops — Results  of  Labors  of  the  First  Itinerants —  816  and  3856  Con- 
trasted—Tables  of  Comparative  Progress— Summary  in  1826— Summary 
in  1856— Detailed  View  of  the  Results  of  the  Fourth  Decade — The  Seven 
Conferences  in  1856. 

EVERY  event  in  1856  of  more  than  ordinary  occurrence  in 
the  transactions  of  our  ecclesiastical  affairs,  of  which  we 
have  any  knowledge,  may  be  summed  up  in  the  following 
brief  statements: 

(a.)  In  the  Ohio  Conference  the  preachers'  aid  society  was 
organized. 

(b.)  In  the  Indiana  Conference  they  organized  a  preachers'  aid 
society  and  an  historical  and  literary  society. 

These  were  all  formed  at  the  suggestion  of  Bishop  Payne,  and 
drafted  in  every  instance  by  him,  except  in  the  case  of  the  lit- 
erary and  historical  society  of  the  Indiana  Conference. 

(r.)  A  model  constitution  for  auxiliary  missionary  societies  was 
drafted  for  the  Missouri  District  by  Brothers  Brooks,  Tyler  and 
Miles. 

(d)  The  attitude  of  the  Baltimore,  Ohio,  Missouri  and  Indiana 
Conferences  on  the  subject  of  education,  which  is  expressed  in 
the  reports  of  their  respective  committees,  of  which  the  ablest  is 
that  of  Ohio,  as  the  reader  will  see  by  the  examination  of  them. 
The  report  of  the  Ohio  Conference  is  the  one  first  given : 

To  the  BisJiops  and  Conference: 

Your  committee,  to  whom  was  referred  the  subject  of  Education,  begs 
leave  to  present  the  following  report: 

Believing,  as  we  do,  that  a  correct  education  is  the  foundation  of  the 
elevation  of  any  people,  and  the  principal  lever  in  the  divine  arrangement 
to  raise  us  as  a  people  out  of  that  vortex  of  oppression  and  degradation 
into  which  our  enemies  have  placed  us,  we  would  here  observe,  that  just 
in  proportion  to  an  individual's  intelligence  is  he  prepared  to  resistor 
(  402  ) 


A  Review  of  the  F/rs/  Four  Decade*. 


403 


calmly  submit  to  the  encroachments  on  his  liberty.  And  what  we  say  of 
individuals  is  strictly  true  of  nations  under  similar  circumstances.  Such 
being  our  humble  opinion  of  the  subject  under  consideration,  it  might  be 
asked,  in  what  sense  are  we  to  be  educated— morally,  religiously,  mentally 
and  physically  ? 

Moral  education  consists  in  teaching  correct  habits  of  life.  Wherever 
the  moral  rectitude  of  a  people  is  bad,  whatever  their  intellectual  attain- 
ments may  be,  that  people  are  degraded  and  despised  by  the  intelligent 
and  upright  of  their  fellow  men;  therefore,  the  cultivation  and  practice  of 
good  morals  should  be  inculcated  and  instilled  in  the  mind  in  childhood  by 
parents  or  guardians.  If  the  mind  is  educated  from  infancy  to  abhor 
bad  conduct,  it  will  carry  this  abhorrence  to  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  all 
through  life. 

On  a  religious  education  we  cannot  place  too  high  an  estimate,  as  it  is  of 
the  most  vital  importance  to  all.  And  here  we  would  remark,  that  we 
mean  by  religious  education  the  religion  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the 
regeneration  of  the  spirit,  the  sanctiflcation  of  life,  and  the  purifying  of  the 
affections.  This  qualities  for  every  duty  in  life.  Religious  education 
should  always  keep  pace  with  the  intellectual,  in  order  to  produce  a  well- 
balanced  mind. 

Physical  education  :  It  has  been  truly  said  that  a  strong  mind  in  a  weak 
body  is  as  inconsistent  as  a  large  engine  in  a  small  boat,  the  weight  and 
force  of  which  will  sink  the  vessel ;  hence,  moral  courage  and  physical 
strength  are  necessary  for  the  full  development  of  man.  This  subject  is  of 
the  utmost  interest  to  all  people,  but  more  especially  to  ours  of  the  free 
states,  for  we  have  not  only  been  shut  out  of  the  seminaries  of  learning, 
where  the  immortal  mind  is  developed  in  its  divine  proportions,  but  from 
the  workshop,  the  farm,  and  mainly  from  labor  in  general;  hence  the  phys- 
ical system,  as  well  as  the  intellectual  powers,  has  deteriorated.  If, 
therefore,  it  be  true  triat  physical  as  well  as  moral  culture  is  necessary  for 
the  development  of  a  perfect  man,  surely  we,  of  all  people,  stand  in  need 
of  this  development.  Hence,  while  we  seek  mental  training  by  the  direction 
of  inspiration,  let  us  not  forget  that  this  same  inspiration  commends  dili- 
gence in  business.  Therefore,  it  is  becoming  that  we  should  be  careful  to 
develop  the  physical  powers.  In  order  to  do  this,  it  is  essential  to  be 
acquainted  with  the  physical  laws  of  our  nature,  which  may  be  summed 
up  in  the  short  sentence — cleanliness,  diligence  and  temperance. 

Mental  education :  A  well  educated  and  enlightened  mind  will  so  enlarge 
the  structure  in  which  it  dwells  that  no  fetters  forged,  nor  yoke  framed,  will 
be  able  to  hold  it  in  oppression  and  degradation  ;  but  in  spite  of  all  the  com- 
bined powers  of  enactments  or  prejudice  it  will  rise  to  the  level  of  its 
native  talent,  and  from  the  dark  cavity  of  oppression  will  stand  forth  in 
the  image  of  its  great  author  in  the  scale  of  society  for  which  it  was  de- 
signed. And  while  these  are  the  convictions  of  our  hearts,  permit  us  to 
present  some  of  the  errors  of  our  people,  who  are  daily  neglecting  this 
imperative  obligation  to  God,  themselves,  their  offspring,  and  society  in 
general. 


404 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


First,  we  find  to  our  regret  that  a  large  number  of  the  children,  who 
should  be  regular  in  attendance  in  day  school,  by  sheer  neglect  are  left  to 
run  the  streets,  and  learn  habits  that  will  prove  an  incubus  on  their  future 
life;  and  not  only  in  the  day,  but  in  the  holy  Sabbath  school  is  this  neglect 
to  be  traced.  And  lamentable  it  is  to  say,  that  thousands  of  children,  even 
of  professors  of  Christianity,  are,  instead  of  being  sent  to  learn  of  God  and 
heaven,  left  free  to  run  at  large  and  desecrate  the  day  of  the  Lord,  and 
wander  in  the  path  of  vice  to  ruin  and  degradation.  This  we  would,  with 
all  earnestness  of  our  souls,  urged  to  be  changed.  We  would  beg  leave  to 
dissent  from  the  opinion  of  many  of  our  people,  who,  as  soon  as  a  child 
comes  to  the  stage  of  twelve  or  fifteen  years,  think  it  is  to  the  highest 
interest  of  both  parent  and  child  to  take  it  from  school  and  put  it  out  to 
work  for  wages,  thus  depriving  it  of  the  most  important  period  of  its  im- 
provement. For,  while  we  would  urge  the  duty  of  persons  teaching  their 
children  to  work,  it  must  be  observed  that  about  the  age  above  referred  to, 
the  mind  is  the  most  susceptible,  and  the  reasoning  faculties  are  just  be- 
coming qualified  to  discern  in  a  small  degree  the  benefits  accruing  from 
perseverance  in  study  and  appreciation  of  what  they  may  learn.  In  no 
period  should  there  be  so  much  exertion  made  to  give  the  child  the  advan- 
tage of  school  as  this,  and  there  is  no  amount  of  money  that  can  justly 
remunerate  the  intellectual  part  for  this  act  of  the  parentsto  their  children. 
Another  fact  to  which  we  would  beg  leave  to  direct  attention  is  this:  the 
indifference  with  which  we  look  upon  a  child  losing  a  day  now  and  then. 
This  precious  time,  in  a  large  degree,  is  permitted  to  run  to  waste,  and 
all  of  this  would  be  obviated  if  parents  only  duly  studied  that  every  hour 
the  child  loses  from  his  class,  and  every  lesson  his  class  recites  in  his 
absence,  in  such  proportion  will  he  be  deficient  in  the  lessons  that  the 
regular  student  will  be  perfect  in.  And  to  this  we  must  attribute  many 
of  the  complaints  we  so  often  hear  of  our  children  not  improving  in  our 
schools.  Advantages  are  opening  for  educational  purposes  among  us,  but 
wre  must  prepare  our  minds  to  avail  ourselves  of  these  advantages  ;  and  if 
we  cannot  adorn  our  children's  bodies  with  costly  attire,  let  us  provide 
to  adorn  their  minds  with  that  jewel  that  will  elevate,  ennoble  and  rescue 
the  bodies  of  our  long  injured  race  from  the  shackles  of  bondage,  and  their 
minds  from  trammels  of  ignorance  and  vice. 

Ed.  D.  Davis.  ^ 

Lewis  Woodson, 

G.  C.  Graham,       \  Committee. 

Iff.  T.  Xewson, 

A.  R.  Green,  J 

We  now  present  the  Missouri  Report  on  Education: 

Your  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  duty  of  reporting  on  the  ed- 
ucational prospects  in  the  bounds  of  this  Conference,  would  respectfully 
submit  the  following:  We  have  had  the  same  under  review,  and  find  that 
there  are  ten  day  schools  under  the  control  of  our  Church  in  this  district, 
all  of  which  are  in  a  healthy  condition.    We  are  not  able  to  report  the 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades. 


405 


exact  number  of  pupils  attending  those  schools,  but  are  informed  that  tliey 
arc  well  attended,  The  age  which  we  live  in  is  one  of  expansive  benevo- 
lence. The  genial  influence  of  our  holy  religion  upon  the  heart  pleads 
the  cause  of  humanity,  in  which  it  holds  a  controlling  influence,  and  we 
may  confidently  look  to  our  educational  enterprises  as  the  instruments 
which,  in  their  direct  and  legitimate  workings,  are  the  medium  through 
which  our  humble  efforts  to  evangelize  our  people  are  to  succeed,  till  they 
shall,  like  the  sun,  pour  down  their  illuminating  and  melting  influence 
upon  our  sin-disordered  world  until  every  source  of  human  wretchedness 
shall  be  dissipated,  and  every  moral  wilderness  shall  rejoice  and  blossom 
as  the  rose.  It  is  a  source  of  peculiar  pleasure  to  your  committee  to  see 
that  there  is  a  general  disposition  among  our  people  to  encourage  and  sus- 
tain the  cause  of  education.  Nor  is  this  applicable  to  our  lay  brethren  ex- 
clusively, but  a  general  interest  is  aroused  among  our  clerical  brethren 
also,  even  among  the  elder  division  of  them.  There  is  a  manifest  deter- 
mination to  master  those  sciences  that  are  so  much  needed  by  the  man  of 
God,  that  he  maybe  adequate  to  the  great  work  of  the  ministry. 

Your  committee  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  Preachers'  Moral,  Mental 
and  Religious  Improving  Association  will  prove  to  be  a  material  aid  in  the 
improvement  of  every  mind  associated  with  it,  and  recommend  the  pas- 
sage of  the  following  resolutions : 

Whereas,  Education  is  one  of  the  principal  means  of  creating  in  the 
mind  those  noble  feelings  which  prompt  us  to  the  practice  of  piety,  virtue 
and  temperance ;  which  elevate  us  to  the  dignity  of  a  man  and  a  Christian, 
and  which  assimilates  us  to  our  Maker.  Therefore,  we  recommend  all  our 
preachers  to  enjoin  undeviating  attention  to  its  promotion. 


The  following  is  the  Indiana  Report  on  Education  : 

To  the  Reverend  Bishops  and  Conference  Assembled : 

We,  to  whom  was  referred  the  business  of  making  out  a  report  on  educa- 
tion within  the  bounds  of  the  Indiana  District,  have  matured  that  subject 
as  far  as  we  have  been  able,  and  would  respectfully  state  it  as  our  opinion 
that  our  people  and  our  white  friends  have  become  somewhat  properly 
interested  on  this  subject.  Your  committee  firmly  believes  that  education 
proper  leads  to  a  true  knowledge  of  the  Great  God  of  the  Universe. 
Without  the  mind  is  cultivated,  it  seems  to  be  impossible  for  the  inherent 
beauties,  energies  and  powers  thereof  to  develop  themselves.  It  should, 
therefore,  always  be  the  appropriate  work  of  the  Church  to  attend  to  this 
thing.  Learning  has  always  been  greatly  prized  and  highly  cherished  by 
a  great  many,  yet  neglected  by  more.  It  has  been  confined  to  monasteries ; 
but  these  bars  could  not  withstand  the  expansion  of  a  heaven-enkindled 
thirst  for  learning,  which  unbolts  these  monasteries,  and  is  now  striving  to 
give  free  vent  to  man's  immortal  nature. 

Your  committee  finds  the  number  of  pupils  in  day  and  Sabbath-schools 
to  be  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  eighty-four  in  the  bounds  of  the 


August  8th,  1856. 


406 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Indiana  Conference.  We  rejoice  to  know  that  there  are  now  coming  into 
existence  a  great  many  facilities  for  useful  learning  which  are  placed  within 
the  reach  of  our  people.  Among  these  are  Avery  and  Xenia  Colleges,  with  a 
few  others  East  and  West,  which  are  offering  great  assistance  to  our  people. 

Therefore,  in  view  of  the  foregoing  facts,  and  as  the  grand  center 
towards  which  all  useful  knowledge  tends  is  God,  your  committee  would 
recommend  that  each  preacher,  when  he  reaches  his  charge,  do  all  that  he 
possibly  can  to  encourage  parents  and  guardians  to  do  all  they  can  for  the 
education  and  elevation  of  the  youths  under  their  control ;  and 

Whereas,  Our  white  friends  are  doing  so  much  for  the  elevation  and 
happiness  of  our  people,  as  in  the  cases  especially  of  the  Avery,  Xenia 
and  Illinois  Institutes; 

Resolred,  1st.  That  this  Conference  is  highly  gratified  with  what  has  heen 
done  and  is  doing  in  offering  educational  facilities  to  our  people  such  as 
the  above. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  we  are  much  pleased  with  the  project  of  the  Rev.  A. 
R.  Green  to  establish  a  publishing  organ  in  Zanesville,  O. 

All  of  which  we  would  respectfully  submit. 

Thomas  Strothers,  | 
William  A.  Dove,        -  Committee. 
William  Jackson.  J 

The  next  report  is  that  of  Baltimore  : 

We,  your  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  great  subject  of  educa- 
tion, ask  to  submit  the  following:  Education  has  claimed  the  attention  of 
all  civilized  nations  for  centuries.  It  was  education  that  distinguished 
ancient  Greece  and  Rome.  History  informs  us  that  Africa  once  produced 
some  of  che  most  learned  men  that  ever  lived  in  their  day;  and  what  her 
sons  once  were  they  can  be  again.  All  that  is  wanting  is  energy  upon  the 
part  of  those  who  are  identified  with  the  interests  of  the  race.  It  is 
visible  to  the  view  of  every  rational  mind  that  if  ever  the  African  Meth- 
odist Church  is  raised  to  that  high  and  eminent  position  which  our  fathers 
contemplated  in  her  organization,  she  must  educate  her  sons.  The  Disci- 
pline by  which  we  are  governed  cannot  be  properly  understood  without 
education ;  the  rich  treasures  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  cannot  be  correctly 
exhibited  without  it.  We  therefore  beg  leave  to  offer  the  following  pre- 
amble and  resolutions: 

Whereas,  We,  the  members  of  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  of 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  have  beheld  with  delight  the 
great  and  glorious  effects  resulting  from  education  among  mankind,  both 
in  the  Church  and  the  State ;  and 

Whereas,  We  are  convinced  that  education  is  the  only  thing  calculated 
to  elevate  us  as  a  people  in  this  country,  politically,  morally  and  religiously. 
Destitute  of  it,  we  must  inevitably  retrograde ;  with  it,  we  may  hope  for 
success.  From  the  present  indication  we  are  led  to  believe  that  our  race 
shall.be  elevated.  But  much  depends  upon  the  exertions  of  the  ministers 
of  the  Gospel,  as  they  should  be  the  pioneers  of  the  people,  leading  them 
from  one  point  of  elevation  to  another.  Therefore, 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades. 


407 


Resolved  by  the  Baltimore  Annual  Conference  in  Conference  Assembled,  1st. 
That  we  regard  education  as  the  great  luminary  to  light  up  the  under- 
standing  of  the  human  family. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  we  recommend  to  the  members  of  our  Church 
throughout  the  district  that  wisdom  is  the  principal  tiling;  therefore,  get 
wisdom. 

Resolved,  3d.  That  the  members  and  delegates  to  the  General  Conference 
be  and  are  hereby  instructed  to  urge  upon  that  body  to  adopt  some  meas- 
ures for  the  more  thorough  education  of  the  ministry. 


We  will  now  turn  to  the  work  of  the  Conferences  for  the 
year.  Bishop  Quinn's  field  of  labor  for  the  years  1856  and  1860 
included  the  Philadelphia,  New  York  and  New  England  Confer- 
ences. Bishop  Nazrey's  field  for  the  same  period  included  the  Ohio 
and  Canada  regions.  Bishop  Payne  had  Baltimore,  Missouri  and 
Indiana.  Therefore,  at  the  new  Conference  which  sprang  into 
existence  in  the  year  1855,  it  was  Bishop  Payne's  work  to  organ- 
ize it,  which  he  did,  and  its  first  annual  session  was  held 
August  2d,  1856.  As  has  been  said,  it  was  an  off-shoot  of  the 
Indiana  Conference,  which  up  to  this  time  had  covered  all  the 
states  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  Missouri,  Kentucky  and  Louisiana. 
This  year  the  total  number  of  accredited  members  in  Society  was 
set  down  at  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  nine;  itinerant 
elders,  six;  deacons,  three;  licentiates,  one.  One  death  occurred 
during  the  current  year,  in  the  person  of  William  M.  Rice,  of 
whom  no  biographical  sketch  was  given.  Thornton  Smith  was 
admitted  into  the  itinerant  ranks.  The  cause  of  missions  was 
considered,  and  thrilling  speeches  in  its  behalf  were  made  by 
Elders  John  M.  Brown  and  Willis  R.  Revels,  the  following  pre- 
amble and  resolutions  being  presented  by  Elder  John  M.  Brown  : 

Whereas,  There  is  a  vast  population  without  the  Bread  of  Life  in  Cen- 
tral America,  and  no  one  has  as  yet  occupied  that  territory;  and 

Whereas,  We  believe  our  Church  is  destined,  under  God,  to  diffuse 
itself  into  every  region  where  immortal  souls  are  found ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  this  Missouri  Annual  Conference  set  apart  a  mission 
in  that  vast  region  as  soon  as  a  proper  man  can  be  found. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  our  Bishop  is  authorized  to  appoint  a  man  and  open 
a  mission  at  any  time  during  the  year  that  he  obtains  the  proper  material 
in  men  and  means. 


Committee. 


408 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Elder  W.  Revels  moved  to  amend  the  last  resolution  by  insert- 
ing: "So  soon  as  proper  men  and  means  can  be  obtained."  The 
preamble  and  resolutions  were  well  meant  by  the  mover,  and  the 
Conference  meant  well  in  adopting  them,  but  the  step  was  actu- 
ated by  a  zeal  unenlightened  by  a  sound  knowledge  of  human 
nature  as  well  as  geography,  especially  political  geography.  The 
idea  and  belief  that  the  African  ML  E.  Church  is  destined  to  dif- 
fuse itself  into  every  region  where  immortal  souls  are  found  is 
fallacious,  because  all  men  will  not  accept  the  idea  nor  the  facts 
expressed  by  this  Conference.  And  when  we  recollect  that  the 
men  who  composed  the  B.  M.  E.  Church,  who  were  all  raised  in 
the  bosom  of  the  African  If.  E.  Church,  had  rejected  .similar 
facts,  it  needs  no  prophet's  eye  to  see  that  intelligent  men  of 
color  will  be  forever  opposed  to  an  organization  that  will  sever 
them  from  Christian  brethren  on  account  of  their  color,  and  cut 
them  off  from  almost  all  the  practical  sympathies  which  are 
caused  by  the  color  line.  Moreover,  the  geographical  boundaries 
create  distinct  and  separate  communities,  states,  nations  and 
governments.  In  these,  where  the  laws  are  in  harmony  with  the 
moral  principles  of  Christianity,  distinctions  on  account  of  race 
or  color  cannot  exist ;  hence,  social  distinctions  based  upon  race 
or  color  cannot  exist,  and  therefore  every  name,  title  and  thing 
which  creates  or  has  a  tendency  to  create  such  barbarous  dis- 
tinctions must  and  will  be  rejected.  Hence,  the  idea  and  belief 
that  the  African  Methodist  P^piscopal  Church  is  "destined  to 
diffuse  itself  into  every  region  where  immortal  souls  are  found" 
is  both  absurd  and  ridiculous.  Such  an  idea  and  such  a  belief 
can  be  entertained  and  cherished  of  Christianity  alone. 

The  literary  movements  of  this  first  Missouri  Conference  re- 
sulted in  the  adoption  of  a  course  of  studies,  and  to  every  mem- 
ber an  essay  was  assigned  for  the  anniversary  exercises  of  1857. 

Although  the  state  of  Louisiana  was  embraced  in  the  first 
Missouri  Conference,  such  was  the  intolerant  spirit  of  slavery 
that  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  did  not  extend  beyond  the  limits  of 
New  Orleans,  and  it  existed  there  only  by  a  special  charter 
granted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  that  state. 

Our  condition  in  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  was  similar  to  that  of  New 
Orleans — not  by  the  right  of  Christian  citizens  in  a  Christian 
country,  but  by  mere  sufferance,  such  as  heathen  authorities  now 
grant  to  Christian  missionaries,  did  we  exist  in  the  state  of  Mis- 
souri and  in  the  city  of  St.  Louis. 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades. 


409 


The  Ohio  Conference  was  the  next  in  order  to  convene,  and 
the  extraordinary  occurrence  was  the  visit  and  the  speech  of  Rev. 
Mansfield  French,  then  president  of  the  Methodist  Female  Col- 
lege in  Xcnia,  0.,  on  the  planting  of  Wilberforce  University,  at 
Tawawa  Springs,  three  and  one-half  miles  north-east  of  Xenia.  * 

After  an  introduction  to  the  Conference  by  the  presiding 
Bishop  he  said  substantially  as  follows:  "Nations  who  do  not 
recognize  their  legitimate  destiny,  or  the  work  that  is  as- 
signed to  them,  mistake  both.  The  fathers  of  the  Revolution 
mistook  both  in  their  day,  in  agreeing  with  the  South  to  forge 
fetters  for  the  colored  man,  providing  they  (the  men  of  the 
South),  would  help  them  to  break  the  British  yoke.  But  we  are 
all  now  smarting  under  it.  How  is  the  condition  of  the  op- 
pressed colored  man  to  be  changed?"  He  continued:  "The 
effects  of  the  first  visit  of  Frederick  Douglass- upon  the  commu- 
nity of  Xenia — and  that,  too,  in  comparison  with  the  visit  of 
Dr.  Thompson,  of  Dr.  Allen  Saxe,  the  poet,  and  of  Horace 
Greeley — were  that  the  audience  of  Xenia  did  not  regard  the 
color  of  the  man,  but  the  words  that  came  from  his  great  mouth 
and  issued  from  his  great  brain."  Said  he:  "In  a  musical  in- 
strument we  do  not  regard  the  material  but  the  sound."  He  also 
alluded  to  the  history  and  life  of  Rev.  Lemuel  Haynes,  the  first 
colored  minister  of  the  Gospel  in  New  England,  and,  so  far  as  is 
known,  the  first  in  the  United  States.  "  He  was  a  man  of  mixed 
blood.  His  father  was  a  pure  African.  His  mother  was  a  white 
woman  of  respectable  ancestry  in  New  England.  He  was  tal- 
ented, well  educated,  pious  and  witty.  Though  born  in  obscu- 
rity, and  of  poor  parents,  abandoned  by  them  in  early  infancy, 
yet,  by  the  forces  within  himself,  and  by  himself,  he  made  his 
name  famous  in  his  day  throughout  all  New  England,  and  was 
pastor  of  a  white  Congregational  Church  in  Rutland,  Vermont, 
for  thirty  years,  and  in  Grandville,  N.  Y.,  for  about  seven  years. 
His  fame  was  not  built  upon  talents  and  learning  only,  but  by 
talents  and  learning  sanctified  by  the  grace  of  God.  At  the  great 
age  of  eighty,  having  been  a  courageous  soldier  in  the  American 
Revolution,  he  died  a  faithful  soldier  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 

*  This  year,  on  the  2d  day  of  July,  Bishop  Payne  moved  his  residence 
from  Cincinnati  to  Tawawa  Springs  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  founding 
the  Wilberforce  University.  Rev.  Mansfield  French,  of  the  M.  E.  Church, 
one  of  the  agents  of  this  educational  establishment,  visited  and  addressed 
the  Ohio  and  Indiana  Conferences  with  great  power  and  effect. 


410 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


leaving  behind  him  an  unstained  memory  and  a  noble  family  of 
children.1'  Mr.  French  added  that  one  of  the  sons  of  Lemuel 
Hay nes  was  a  college  classmate  of  his.  His  name  Avas  William 
Haynes.  The  last  words  of  the  dying  saint  were :  "  Happy ! 
happyl !  happy!!!  O,  what  beauties  I  have  seen!  Glories  of  the 
other  world  !  What  joys  do  I  feel !  I  have  seen  the  Saviour!  "  Mr. 
French  continued,  saying:  "It  makes  no  difference  what  race  or 
color  a  man  may  be."  Ho  then  proceeded  to  state  the  principles 
upon  which  the  proposed  school  would  1><  based,  and  alluded  to 
the  character  of  the  men  who  should  constitute  the  board  of 
trustees  and  the  faculty.  Allusions  were  made  to  Dr.  Watts1 
Euclid,  to  the  ancient  glory  of  the  Ham i tic  race,  to  the  influence 
of  the  educated  colored  teachers  and  preachers  that  shall  go  forth 
from  the  contemplated  institution.  Mr.  French  also  met  the 
African  colonization  objection  made  by  M.  M.  Clark  at  the  recent 
General  Conference.  He  did  not  want  to  adopt  a  single  princi- 
ple thai  tie'  Lord  would  not  approve,  nor  a  single  rule  which 
Jesus  Christ  himself  would  not  approve.  Moreover,  he  said  that 
if  Dr.  Durbin  was  the  author  of  the  scheme,  or  had  the  control 
of  it,  he  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it. 

This  eloquent  speech  of  Brother  French  (who  was  one  of  the 
agents  of  Wilberforce  University,  and  who  did  much  to  secure 
the  property  and  to  found  the  institution)  was  listened  to  with 
deep  attention,  and  made  a  lasting  impression  upon  his  au- 
dience. 

This  year  the  Union  Seminary  gave  the  following  brief  report  to 
the  Ohio  Conference,  and  its  progress,  condition,  etc.,  we  shall  see : 

THE  SEMINARY  REPORT. 

To  tfie  Bishops  and  Conference : 

Your  teacher  appointed  to  the  Union  Seminary  School  begs  leave  to 
report  as  follows:  I  can  say  but  little  of  the  prosperity  of  the  institution. 
I  shall  not  here  attempt  to  specify  the  number  of  scholars  in  each  term 
of  the  year,  as  I  have  done  on  other  occasions,  but  proceed  to  state  that 
during  the  present  Conference  year  I  have  had  fourteen  scholars  in 
attendance.  And  had  the  Conference  made  the  provision  for  the  school 
that  was  in  their  power  to  have  done,  the  school  would  have  been  far  in 
advance  of  what  it  now  is.  But  I  have  tried  to  do  the  best  I  could, 
under  the  circumstances  placed,  still  looking  to  the  Conference  for  help, 
and  hoping  for  better  times.  I  hope  that  this  Conference  will  do 
something  for  the  better  success  of  the  school.  As  I  have  in  former 
reports  suggested  some  items  for  the  prosperity  of  the  school  without 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades, 


111 


effect,  therefore  I  will  not  recapitulate,  but  will  leave  the  matter  to  the 
better  judgment  <>i"  this  body.  All  of  which  I  would  most  respectfully 
submit  to  this  body. 

It  was  signed  by  Edward  I).  Davis,  principal.  Jt  was  then 
moved  thai  the  Beminary  farm  be  rented  for  five  years,  and  the 
trustees  were  empowered  t<»  grant  to  the  lessee  the  power  to  clear 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  acres  of  the  lands,  and  that  he  should  have 
a  lease  on  the  east  side  of  the  farm.  Bishop  Xazrey  was  appointed 
one  of  the  hoard  of  managers,  and  Bishops  Quinn  and  Payne 
trustees. 

We  may  now  ask,  at  the  close  of  the  work  of  1856,  what  was 
accomplished  by  the  first  generation  of  laborers?  It  is  said  and 
believed  that  a  generation  is  horn  into  this  world,  and  is  taken 
out  of  it  within  thirty-three  or  thirty-five  years.  These  genera- 
tions enter  upon  the  stage  of  human  history,  perform  their  part 
in  the  great  drama  of  life,  and  make  their  exit — some  in  a  thun- 
der-storm, others  in  a  cyclone,  many  in  a  calm,  splendid,  beauti- 
ful sunset,  within  that  short  period.  Yet  not  all.  Few  are  made 
exceptions  to  the  general  law.  Some  of  these  reach  threescore 
years  and  ten,  the  biblical  limit ;  a  lesser  number  are  permitted 
to  pass  over  this  boundary.  Of  this  lesser  number  very  few 
attain  eighty,  ninety,  or  one  hundred  years ;  seldom  is  one  allowed 
to  pass  into  the  second  century.  We  say  that  not  all  of  the  same 
generation  die  out  within  thirty-three  or  thirty-five  years,  but  the 
limit  is  set  to  every  one's  mortal  career,  beyond  which  he  cannot 
go.  Some  do  not  reach  it  because  they  cut  themselves  off  by 
their  own  vices  and  crimes.  "  Bloodthirsty  and  deceitful  men 
shall  not  live  out  half  of  their  days."  The  good  eannot  die  until 
their  work  be  done,  because  the  work  and  the  workmen  are  of 
divine  appointment,  and  are  guarded  by  the  Omnipotent.  All 
of  God's  reasons  for  such  an  arrangement  are  not  known,  but  it 
seems  that  he  wills  that  there  shall  be  no  break  in  human  history, 
no  wide  and  deep  chasm  which  cannot  be  bridged,  no  chain  with- 
out its  connecting  link.  Unlike  a  man,  he  is  not  led  backwards 
and  forwards  by  prejudice,  passion  or  impulse.  Unlike  the  mul- 
titude, he  is  not  led  by  the  rhetoric  nor  the  oratory  of  the  first  or 
last  speaker.  No!  The  Almighty  Father  of  humanity  guides 
all  his  movements  by  unerring  laws  or  principles  originating 
within  himself,  and  which  he  has  ordained,  that  every  generation 
shall  dovetail  itself  into  the  past  and  the  future.  Thus  Adam 
and  Seth,  Enos  and  Enoch,  Methuselah  and  Lamech  and  Noah 


412 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


are  linked  together.  In  the  days  of  Noah  came  the  deluge, 
which  swept  all  the  wicked  from  the  face  of  the  earth.  This 
terrible  catastrophe  produced  a  deep  and  wide  chasm  in  human 
history,  but  it  was  bridged  over  by  righteous  Noah  and  his  three 
sons,  8hem,  Ham  and  Japheth.  By  these  four  persons  and  their 
wives  the  generations  of  the  ante-deluge  have  been  dovetailed 
into  the  generations  post-diluvian,  and  through  this  Noachian 
family  has  posterity  received  the  traditions  of  the  primitive 
ages.  The  following  table,  presented  to  Dr.  Adam  Clark  for  his 
Commentary,  was  prepared  by  William  Blair,  Esq.  (See  the 
volume  on  Genesis,  end  of  eleventh  chapter): 

CONTEMPORANEOUS  PATPJ  A  RCHS. 


Adam 
Was  contemporary 
with 

Laniech         50  years. 

Methuselah.  24  years. 

Jared  476  years. 

Mahalaleel  .535  years. 

Cainan  605  years. 

Enos  695  years. 


Noah 
Was  contemporary 
with 

Lamech  505  years. 

Methuselah. 6C0  years. 

Jared  266  years. 

Mahalaleel. .234  years. 

Cainan  179  years. 

Enos   84  years. 


Shbm 
Was  contemporary 
with 

Lamech         93  years. 

Methuselah  98  years. 

Noah  448  years. 

After  Flood : 
Abraham  ...150  years, 
Isaac   50  years. 


In  like  manner  has  the  Head  of  the  Church  militant  and  tri- 
umphant joined  the  first  generation  of  African  Methodists  to 
the  present,  and  will  link  it  to  the  near  future.  Bishop  Morris 
Brown  was  the  colleague  of  Bishop  Allen  :  Bishops  Waters,  Brown 
and  Quinn  were  colleagues.  These  three  were  conversant  with 
Allen.  Payne.  Morris,  Brown  and  Quinn  were  contemporaries. 
Payne  was  the  colleague  of  Quinn  for  about  twenty  years.  Bish- 
ops Wayman,  Campbell  and  Payne  were  co-laborers  from  1864  to 
1872.  From  1808  to  1880  Bishops  Wayman,  Campbell,  Shorter, 
Ward,  Brown  and  Payne  were  co-laborers.  From  1880  to  1884 
Bishops  Payne,  Wayman,  Campbell,  Shorter,  John  M.  Brown, 
Ward,  Turner,  Dickerson  and  Cain  were  colleagues. 

But  we  are  now  to  see  what  results  sprang  from  the  labors  of 
the  first  itinerants  of  the  Church.  We  are  now  at  the  end  of  the 
tenth  General  Conference,  which  completely  covers  the  life  time 
of  a  generation  of  men.  Thirty-five  years  had  passed  away,  and 
six  years  had  given  us  time  to  observe  some  of  the  results  of  the 
plans  of  Allen  and  his  coadjutors;  time  enough  to  see  what 
kind  of  influence  they  had  exerted  over  their  race,  and  whether 
the  existence  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  had  been  beneficial  or  darn- 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decade*. 


413 


aging  to  the  communities  in  which  her  pastors  had  been  operat- 
ing; time  enough  to  know  whether  she  was  better  in  L856  than 
she  was  in  1816. 

In  1816,  among  the  itinerant  co-laborers  with  Bishop  Allen, 
were  Elders  Morris  Brown,  David  Smith,  Jacob  Tapsico,  Richard 
Williams,  Henry  Harden,  James  Cole,  William  P.  Quinn,  Ed- 
ward Williamson,  Vinsion  Blake,  William  Cousins,  Thomas 
Robinson,  Charles  Pierce,  Jerry  Millar,  Daniel  Coker,  Abner 
Coker  and  Thomas  Hall.  The  laymen  wrere  Stephen  Hill,  Don 
Carlos  Hall  and  Jonathan  Tudas.  Don  Carlos  Hall,  being  the  Con- 
ference steward,  was  allowed  a  seat,  a  voice  and  a  vote.  Stephen 
Smith  was  ordained  a  local  elder,  as  well  as  a  deacon,  by  Bishop 
Allen.  In  1856,  Morris  Brown  and  Edward  Waters,  as  Bishops, 
with  all  the  itinerants,  local  preachers  and  laymen  who  were 
leaders  from  1816  to  1818,  had  passed  from  the  stage  of  action 
to  enjoy  "the  saints'  everlasting  rest."  Only  David  Smith,  the 
itinerant,  and  Stephen  Smith,  the  local  elder,  were  present  at  the 
end  of  forty  years.  Both  of  these,  who  were  ordained  by  Bishop 
Allen,  and  who  were  among  the  counsellors  in  the  Annual  Con- 
ferences from  1816  to  1818,  had  outlived  their  generation,  and 
had  the  privilege  and  satisfaction  of  seeing  a  band  of  young  and 
middle-aged  men,  vigorous,  intelligent  and  earnest,  leading  on 
the  movements  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  They  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  recognizing  in  them  superior  numbers  and  superior  intel- 
ligence, and  their  bosoms  were  full  of  hope  for  a  grander  future. 

The  itinerants  in  1856  were  eighty-nine— five  fold  and  nine 
greater  than  all  who  composed  the  ministry  of  1816.  The  lead- 
ers of  these  eighty-nine  itinerants  were  Elders  Augustus  R.  Green, 
Alexander  W.  Wayman,  Jabez  P.  Campbell,  William  Moore, 
Willis  P.  Revels,  James  A.  Shorter,  M.  M.  Clark,  Richard  Robin- 
son, John  Turner  and  Henry  J.  Young.  The  local  preachers 
were  twenty-nine,  outnumbering  the  entire  convention  of  1816 
by  nine  men.  The  leaders  of  these  local  preachers  were  Dr.  J.  J. 
G.  Bias,  Jordan  Early,  George  W.  Broadie  and  iEneas  Mcintosh. 
But  Rev.  James  J.  Gould  Bias  was  the  chief  of  the  leaders  of  the 
local  delegates  who  then  represented  the  laity  as  well  as  the  local 
preachers. 

The  following  tables  will  show  the  comparative  progress  of  the 
Church  work  from  the  end  of  the  first  decade  in  1826,  when 
Bishop  Allen  was  presiding,  to  the  end  of  the  fourth  decade, 
when  Bishops  Quinn,  Payne  and  Nazrey  were  presiding. 


414 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


SUMMARY  AT  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE  FIRST  DECADE. 


Circuits   10 

Stations   2 

Pastors  or  itinerants   17 

Salaries  for  six  pastors  in  Baltimore  $448  30 

Bishop's  allowance   25  00 

Letter  bill   14  37£ 

Traveling  expenses   9  00 

Secretary's  traveling  expenses   9  00 

Secretary's  fee   4  00 

Livery  for  preachers'  horse   8  00 

Conference  (expenses  for  room)   3  00 

Paid  balance  due  to  the  Bishop   16  87| 

$537  55 

Salaries  for  ten  pastors,  Philadelphia  District   614  20| 


Total  $1,151  75£ 


The  total  number  of  members  was  seven  thousand  nine  hun- 
dred and  thirty-seven. 

This  table  represents  the  condition  of  three  Annual  Confer- 
ences—the Philadelphia,  Baltimore  and  New  York.  At  the  end 
of  the  fourth  decade  we  are  multiplied  into  seven  Conferences — 
more  than  double  those  of  1826.  The  total  sum  reported  for 
sixteen  preachers1  salary  in  1826  was  $1,062.50.  In  1856,  for 
the  support  of  one  hundred  and  ten  preachers,  the  sum  of  $14,- 
887.20  was  raised. 

SUMMARY  AT  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE  FOURTH  DECADE. 


Circuits     63 

Stations   64 

Pastors  110 

Places  of  worship  281 

Preachers' salaries   $14,887  00 

Bishops' allowance   1,115  17 

Contingent   688  20 

Two-cent  money   561  06 

Sabbath-school  collections   403  63 

Book  concern   43  64 

Missions  \   195  02 

Widows  and  orphans   9  26 

Six- cent  money   230  92 

To  make  up  deficiencies  to  preachers   47  50 


Total  cash  collections   $18,271  40 


A  Revieiv  of  the  First  Four  Decades. 


415 


The  total  number  of  members  was  nineteen  thousand  four 
hundred  and  thirty-seven. 

In  the  first  decade  there  was  but  one  Bishop;  at  the  end  of 
the  second  there  were  three.  Bishop  Allen's  salary  was  $75.00 
per  year  and  traveling  expenses;  every  one  of  the  three  Bishops 
received  $;>71.72.!> .  The  two-cent  money  reported  was  for  the 
Bishop's  salary.  It  seems  as  though  there  were  no  Sunday- 
schools  in  the  Connection  at  that  time,  1816.  In  185(5  the  sum 
of  $413.63  was  raised  for  Sunday-school  purposes,  but  the  number 
of  schools  is  not  given.  No  book  concern  was  reported  in  1826, 
although  it  was  ordered  in  1816,  and  Bishop  Allen  was  placed 
at  its  head.  There  was  no  money  raised  in  1826  for  support  of 
missions;  in  1856  the  sum  of  $195.00  was  raised. 

A  more  detailed  view  of  the  results  of  the  fourth  decade  shows 
us  the  condition  of  the  seven  conferences  in  1856: 


BALTIMORE  DISTRICT. 

Circuits  ;   15 

Stations   11 

Pastors    23 

Places  of  worship   76 

Preachers'  salaries   $  

Bishop's  allowance    171  72 

Collected  for  contingent  expenses   251  31 

Two-cent  money    122  00 

Sabbath-schools   32  88 

Total   $577  91 

The  total  number  of  members  was  five  thousand  two  hundred 
and  seventy-nine. 

PHILADELPHIA  DISTRICT. 

Circuits   14 

Stations   5 

Pastors   19 

Houses  of  worship   70 

Preachers'  salaries  $3,392  81 

Bishop's  allowance,   165  00 

Contingent  expenses   187  29 

Two-cent  money   214  40 

Sabbath -schools  

Total   $3,959  50 


416 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Chirr},. 


The  total  number  of  members  was  five  thousand  and  twenty- 
two. 

NEW  YORK  DISTRICT. 


Circuits   10 

Stations  :   7 

Paste rs      17 

Houses  of  worship   38 

Preachers'  salaries  $2,320  87 £ 

Bishop's  allowance    301  18 

Contingent   113  89 

Two  cent  money   75  48 

Six-cent  money   230  92 

Sabbath-schools  

Total  $3,042  34  £ 

The  total  number  of  members  was  one  thousand  nine  hun- 
dred and  six. 

NEW  ENGLAND  DISTRICT. 

Stations   8 

Pastors   8 

Houses  of  worship   11 

Preachers'  salaries  $803  15 

Bishop's  allowance    68  79 

Contingent   60  45 

Two-cent  money   29  53 

Sabbath-schools    88  00 

Total   $1,049  92 

The  total  number  of  members  was  six  hundred  and  sixty-one. 

OHIO  DISTRICT. 

Circuits   12 

Stations     11 

Pastors    22 

Houses  of  worship   24 

Preachers'  salaries   $2,503  52 

Bishop's  allowance   157  03 

Two-cent  money  

Contingent   52  85 

Sabbath-school    153  50 

Book  concern   14  83 

Missions   27  84 

Total  $2,909  57 


The  total  number  of  members  was  three  thousand  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five. 


A  Review  of  the  First  Four  Decades.  117 


INDIANA  DISTRICT. 

Circuits   8 

Stations   12 

Pastors   15 

Places  of  worship   49 

Preachers'  salaries  $3,346  15 

Bishop's  allowance    167  30 

Two-cent  money   119  65 

Contingent   26  41 

Sabbath-school   95  00 

Book  concern     15  31 

Missions   136  53 

Widows  and  orphans   9  26 

To  nike  up  deficiencies  to  preachers   47  50 

Total  $3,963  11 

The  total  number  of  members  was  one  thousand  three  hundred 
and  sixty-nine. 

MISSOURI  DISTRICT. 

Circuits   4 

Stations"   10 

Pastors    6 

Places  of  worship   13 

Preachers'  salaries  $2,520  50 

Bishop's  allowance   84  15 

Contingent   86  00 

Two-cent  money  

Sabbath-schools   34  25 

Book  concern   13  50 

Missions   30  65 

Total  $2,769  05 


The  total  number  of  members  was  one -thousand  nine  hundred 
and  seventy-five. 

The  California  Mission,  under  T.  M.  Ward,  had  one  hundred 
and  thirty-four  members  and  eight  preachers. 

It  is  now  seen  that  at  the  end  of  the  fourth  decade  the  Con- 
nection had  stretched  itself  across  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and 
rooted  itself  in  California — not  stretched  but  leaped — because  in 
L856  it  had  not  a  line  of  organized  churches  stretching  from 
St.  Louis  to  California.  We  had  no  Societies  west  of  St.  Louis, 
Mo.  It  was  the  gold  fever  that  carried  numbers  of  our  laymen 
27 


418 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


and  a  few  of  our  local  preachers  to  California,  who  were  at 
length  gathered  into  a  flock  by  a  minister  there. 

Touching  our  missionary  operations  abroad,  up  to  1850  we 
had  been  operating  in  behalf  of  the  fugitives  from  American 
slavery  in  the  British  Provinces  of  Canada  West.  Our  work 
there  was  purely  missionary. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 


THE  SECOND  GENERATION  OF  WORKERS. 


Literary  Qualifications — Present  Bishops — Development  of  Christian  Char- 
acter— Christian  Education — Wilherforce  University  Under  the  Auspices 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church— Catastrophe  of  1865— Methods  of  Work— Sum- 
mary of  Results  From  1863  to  1876. 

TTTE  have  shown  what  the  first  generation  of  workers  in  the 


A.  M.  E.  Church  was,  and  what  it  was  not;  what  its 


leaders  did  not  do,  and  what  they  did  do,  to  educate  them- 
selves and  that  part  of  the  Christian  Church  committed  to  their 
care  by  the  Invisible  Head  of  the  Church  militant,  who,  though 
unseen,  still  walks  amidst  the  golden  candlesticks,  holding  the 
stare  in  His  right  hand. 

We  are  now  prepared  to  see  what  the  second  generation  of 
workers  is,  and  what  these  workers  are  doing  to  develop  their 
Christian  character.  First,  in  literary  qualifications,  they  are  a 
degree  above  their  progenitors.  Of  the  thirteen  Bishops  which 
we  have  chronicled,  the  first  four  lived  and  died  without  having 
attained  so  much  as  a  good  primary  school  education.  Bishop 
William  Fisher  Dickerson,  one  of  nine  who  presided  over  the 
deliberations  of  the  General  Conferences  of  1880-84,  was  a  grad- 
uate from  the  classical  department  of  Lincoln  University.  Every 
one  of  the  present  eight  has  attained  a  fair  English  education. 
The  majority  of  them  have  made  some  progress  in  the  ancient 
and  modern  languages,  and  some  acquaintance  with  the  mental 
and  physical  sciences.  So  intellectually,  they  are  better  qualified 
for  leadership  than  the  four  who  led  the  movements  of  the  Con- 
nection from  1816  to  18-52.  What  can  be  truly  said  of  them? 
Are  they  an  improvement  on  the  first  generation  of  our  preachers 
and  pastors?  It  is  true  that  a  majority  of  our  itinerants  are 
destitute  of  a  common  school  training;  but  there  are  at  least 
about  one  hundred  who  have  obtained  what  is  equivalent  to  a 
good  common  school  education,  and  about  fifty  or  sixty  who  are 
liberally  educated  men.  Several  of  these  are  classically  trained, 
theologically  trained,  and  legally  trained.  Among  those  who 
have  received  no  regular  training  in  the  schools  are  men  of  strong 
character,  with  clear,  sound  judgment,  who  are  accomplishing 


(419) 


420 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


much  for  God  and  man,  both  in  winning  souls  and  erecting 
houses  of  worship  and  parsonages.  As  to  the  laity,  arc  they  an 
improvement  on  the  first  generations  of  our  people?  We  are 
certain  they  are.  Even  many  of  the  aged  male  and  female 
members  of  our  Connection,  who  came  out  of  the  "house  of 
bondage"  twenty  years  ago,  having  no  knowledge  of  the  written 
word,  because  that  divine  hook  was  sealed  against  them,  have  now 
clearer  conceptions  of  Christianity  and  its  requirements  than  the 
past  generation.  Second,  in  literary  qualifications  the  present 
generation  is  an  Improvement  on  the  past.  Have  they  also  im- 
proved in  moral  sensibilities?  This  is  a  difficult  question.  The 
affirmative  can  he  given  only  in  those  societies  where  the  min- 
istry has  obtained  a  high  moral  development,  and  where  a  higher 
estimate  is  set  upon  quality  than  upon  quantity.  Where  the 
id«  a  and  the  sentiment  of  quantity  are  dominant  there  is  found 
less  moral  sensibility  than  that  which  characterized  the  mothers 
and  fathers  of  our  Zion  thirty-five  or  forty  years  ago.  The  good 
seed  have,  in  many  instances,  been  overwhelmed  by  the  bad. 
This  statement  has  been  so  extensively  true  that  the  good  men 
and  women  of  our  laity,  and  the  conscientious  among  the  min- 
i-try. have  been  overawed,  and  too  timid  to  make  open  resistance 
against  growing  evils.  Third,  is  the  religious  character  of  the 
present  generation  an  improvement  on  the  past?  The  moral 
character  of  a  people  is  always  affected  by  their  religious  views. 
The  moral  binds  us  to  our  fellow  man.  The  religious  binds  us 
to  our  God.  While  a  man  may  in  many  respects  be  better  than 
bis  fellow  man,  he  can  never  be  better  than  his  God.  So,  if  his 
ideas  of  God  be  low,  his  idea-  of  man  are  consequently  low.  If 
his  conceptions  of  the  laws,  the  government,  and  character  of  the 
Creator  be  crude  and  erroneous,  his  ideas  of  his  duty  to  his 
neighbors,  to  wife,  to  his  children,  to  his  country,  must  also  be 
false.  These  divine  laws  hold  good  throughout  the  bounds  of 
tie  African  M.  E.  Church. 

Examining  our  societies  in  the  New  England  and  Middle 
States,  as  well  as  those  in  Virginia  and  Maryland,  you  will 
find  that  the  moral  sensibilities  of  our  people  rise  with  their 
higher  and  more  correct  ideas  of  God,  of  his  character,  his  laws, 
and  his  government.  The  converse  of  this  is  equally  true.  As 
you  leave  Virginia  and  Maryland  and  go  towards  the  Gulf  States, 
excepting  two  or  three  cities,  you  will  sec  and  hear  of  such  forms 
of  vice  existing  in  our  Connection  as  are  almost  incredible.  This 


fhi  Second  (xeneration  of  Workers. 


421 


contrast,  resulting  from  the  low  and  groveling  conceptions  which 
our  people  entertain  of  God,  is  made  manifest  by  what  one  of 
our  itinerants  was  heard  to  say:  "I  would  rather  m  eel  God  than 

Bishop   How  are  we  to  account  for  an  irreverent,  not 

to  say  blasphemous,  remark?  Why,  on  the  ground  of  a  Low, 
miserably  low,  conception  of  that  awfully  holy  God  whom  John 
saw  on  the  Island  of  Patmos,  and  whom  he  so  sublimely  describes 
in  Revelations,  ii.  9-20.  If  thai  preacher  had  recognized  the  fact 
that  the  I  nca  mate  ( rod  is  still  head  of  the  Church  militant;  that 
lie  is  as  much  opposed  to  sin  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Connection  as  he 
was  opposed  to  it  in  the  seven  Churches  of  Asia;  that  lie  who 
abolished  the  ceremonial  law  has  preserved  forever  the  moral 
law,  as  a  rule  of  life  lor  every  one  who  professes  to  be  his  disciple 
—  1  say  if  such  reviews  and  sentiments  had  been  held  and  cher- 
ished by  that  irreverent  preacher,  such  an  utterance  could  not 
have  fallen  from  his  lips.  Sin  is  of  the  devil.  Every  man  living 
in  sin  is  a  child  of  the  devil — whether  he  be  in  the  ministry  or 
in  the  laity,  he  is  a  child  of  the  devil.  To  such  our  "God  is  a 
consuming  fire."  Now,  what  has  been  said  of  the  present  gener- 
ation is  true.  We  have  among  us  some  very  good  people,  and 
some  very  bad;  some  very  intelligent,  and  some  very  ignorant; 
some  who  may  be  called  stupid,  and  others  who  may  be  called 
learned.  Let  us  now  see  what  this  generation  is  doing  for  the 
development  of  Christian  education  among  us,  and  with  it  the 
development  of  Christian  character. 

The  reader  has  already  been  informed  how  Bishop  D.  A. 
Payne  became  connected  with  Wilberforce  University.  The 
property  known  by  this  name  was  first  instituted  as  a  school, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  in  1850,  and  Rev.  M.  P. 
Gaddis,  Jr.,  was  its  first  principal,  serving  from  October  or 
November,  1856,  to  June,  1857.  His  classes  were  all  in  the 
elementary  studies.  He  was  assisted  by  his  wife.  He  had  little 
or  no  experience  in  the  school-room,  but  did  the  best  he 
could.  As  a,  pulpit  orator  he  was  above  the  average  of  Metho- 
dist preachers.  He  was  succeeded,  at  the  end  of  eight  months,  by 
Mr.  James  K.  Parker,  a  Baptist  layman,  a  gentleman  of  excellent 
moral  character,  and  an  earnest  Christian — cool,  forecasting, 
judicious;  no  service  was  too  menial  for  him  and  his  earnest 
wife  to  perform,  if  it  would  promote  the  welfare  of  the  students 
and  the  interest  of  the  institution.  He  managed  the  school  for 
eighteen  or  twenty  months,  and  retired  highly  approved  of  by  the 


422 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


trustees.    Prof.  Parker  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Richard  S.  Rust, 

D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  an  alumnus  of  the  Wesleyan  University.  His  co- 
laborers  were  Prof.  Geo.  W.  Wendell,  A.  M.  (Wesleyan  Univer- 
sity.), Miss  Mary  J.  Allen  (  Wesleyan  Academy  ).  Miss  Sarah  Jane 
Woodson  (Oberlinj,  and  Miss  Adelaide  Warren  (Oberlin). 
President  Rust  labored  with  great  zeal  and  skill  for  the  success 
of  the  work  assigned  him,  from  June,  1858,  to  March  10th,  1863, 
the  date  when  the  property  and  [ill  its  advantages  were  sold  to 
the  agent  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  The  president's  labors  were 
crowned  with  success  in  more  than  one  direction,  for  many  of 
the  students  were  led  to  Christ  under  his  ministrations.  Several 
of  our  most  prominent  and  successful  itinerants  now  occupying 
the  field  were  among  his  students,  such  as  Rev.  W.  H.  Hunter,* 
formerly  of  the  Virginia  Conference  (1844-45),  and  for  four  years 
our  general  book  steward  (1872-76);  Rev.  John  T.  Hayslet,  of 
the  New  England  Conference,  and  Rev.  R.  H.  Cain,  first  super- 
intendent of  missions  in  the  state  of  South  Carolina,  a  senator 
of  that  state,  a  member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  and  in  1884  the  junior  Bishop 
of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  having  been  elected  and  ordained  in 
1880.  Many  who  were  under  Dr.  Rust's  training  became 
teachers  in  the  South.  To  his  personal  influence  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  is  indebted  for  the  splendid  property  we  have  at  Wilber- 
force j  because  he  made  the  proposition  to  the  writer  to  purchase 
Wilberforce  for  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and  said:  "The  A.  M. 

E.  Church  can  have  it  for  its  indebtedness  ($10,000;,  but  no 
other  party  can  obtain  it  for  that  sum."  It  was  in  the  month  of 
March.  1863,  when,  under  the  pressure  of  the  Civil  War,  the 
trustees  felt  constrained  to  suspend  operations  and  abandon 
the  enterprise,  and  the  property  was  sold  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
The  following  historical  sketch  of  Wilberforce,  written  by  Bishop 
D.  A.  Payne,  at  the  request  of  the  authorities  of  the  state  of 
Ohio,  for  the  Centennial  Exhibition  in  1876,  will  give  a  full  and 
complete  understanding  of  the  entire  work,  from  its  inception 
under  the  M.  E.  Church,  down  to  1876,  Avhen  it  had  been  in  the 
hands  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  for  thirteen  years: 

*  Known  during  the  civil  war  as  Chaplain  Hunter,  of  the  fourth  United 
States  colored  troops,  Col.  Samuel  Duncan.  He,  Chaplain  Hunter,  served 
from  September,  1863,  to  May,  1866.  The  chaplain  is  a  man  of  tried  and 
sterling  integrity. 


The  Second  Generation  of  Worker*. 


423 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH. 

WlLBERFORCE  UNDER  THE  AUSPICES  OF  THE  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

It  was  one  of  the  darkest  periods  of  the  nation's  history  when  the  Cin- 
cinnati Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  moved  by  the 
inspiration  of  Christian  philanthropy,  appointed  a  committee  of  seven  to 
consider  and  report  a  plan  for  the  improvement  of  the  intellectual  and 
moral  condition  of  the  thirty  thousand  colored  people  of  Ohio  and  those  of 
other  free  states,  by  furnishing  them  with  such  facilities  of  education  as 
had  been  generally  beyond  their  reach.  This  period  was  that  intervening 
between  the  passage  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Bill  and  the  breaking  out  of  the 
Civil  War.  The  demon  of  slavery  had  reached  the  zenith  of  its  power, 
and  was  preparing  for  its  deadly  struggle  with  the  genius  of  liberty.  A 
brief  history  of  the  enterprise  was  written  by  one  of  its  chief  actors,  and 
is  too  interesting  and  important  a  leaf  in  the  history  of  our  national  pro- 
gress to  be  abridged.  I  therefore  give  it  here  verbatim  et  literatim.  It  is 
from  the  pen  of  Rev.  John  F.  Wright,  D.  D. : 

"  The  mission  of  Methodism,  like  that  of  the  Gospel,  is  to  every  human 
being.  All  classes  have  engaged  her  attention,  especially  the  poor,  and 
the  colored  people  of  this  and  other  lands  have  shared  of  her  sympathies 
and  labors.  In  1853  some  of  the  ministers  and  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  saw  and  felt  the  necessity  of  a  more  liberal  and  concen- 
trated effort  to  improve  the  condition  of  and  furnish  the  facilities  of  edu- 
cation to  the  thirty  thousand  colored  people  in  the  state  of  Ohio  and  those 
of  other  free  states.  At  the  session  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference,  held  at 
Hillsboro,  September  28th,  1853,  on  motion  of  Rev.  A.  Lowery,  it  was 
ordered  that  a  committee  of  seven  be  appointed  by  the  president  to  inquire 
and  report  to  the  next  Conference  what  can  be  best  done  to  promote  the 
welfare  of  the  colored  people  among  us.  Bishop  James  appointed  the 
following  committee,  viz. :  John  F.  Wright,  Augustus  Eddy,  A.  Lowery, 
G.  Moody,  J.  T.  Mitchell,  William  I.  Fee  and  Charles  Elliott.  A  majority 
of  the  committee  met,  at  the  call  of  the  chairman,  at  the  Methodist  Book 
Concern,  on  the  9th  of  August,  1854,  and,  on  a  full  and  free  discussion, 
adopted  the  following  brief  outline  of  a  plan  which  was  judged  best  calcu- 
lated to  answer  the  end  had  in  view,  and  which  the  chairman  was  re- 
quested to  elaborate  in  a  report  to  be  presented  to  the  Conference : 

"Resolved,  1st.  That  it  is  of  the  greatest  importance,  both  to  the  colored 
and  white  races  in  the  free  states,  that  all  the  colored  people  should  receive 
at  least  a  good  common  school  education ;  and  that  for  this  purpose  well 
qualified  teachers  are  indispensable. 

"  Resolved,  2d.  That  the  religious  instruction  of  the  colored  people  is 
necessary  to  their  elevation  as  well  as  their  salvation. 

"  Resolved,  3d.  That  we  recommend  the  establishment  of  a  literary  insti- 
tution of  a  high  order  for  the  education  of  the  colored  people  generally, 
and  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  teachers  of  all  grades  to  labor  in  the 
work  of  educating  the  colored  people  in  our  country  and  elsewhere. 


424 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


"  Resolved,  4th.  That  we  recommend  that  an  attempt  be  made  on  the 
part  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  to  co-operate  witli  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  promoting  the  intellectual  and  religious 
improvement  of  the  colored  people. 

"  Resolved,  5th.  That  we  recommend  the  appointment  of  a  general  agent 
to  carry  out  the  object  proposed  in  the  foregoing  resolutions,  and  to  labor 
otherwise  for  the  improvement  of  the  people  of  color. 

"  Resolved,  6th.  That  we  will  furnish  all  the  Conferences  in  the  free 
states  of  the  West  with  a  copy  of  our  resolutions,  and  respectfully  request 
them  to  co-operate  with  us. 

"  Resolved,  7th.  That  the  editor  of  the  Western  Christian  Advocate  be  re- 
quested to  publish  the  foregoing  resolutions,  and  call  the  attention  of  the 
Conferences  invited  to  concur  in  them  in  such  remarks  as  he  may  deem 
proper. 

"John  F.  Wright,  Chairman. 

"A.  Lowery,  Secretary." 

Dr.  C.  C.  Elliott  accompanied  the  publication  of  these  resolutions  with 
an  able  editorial.  The  chairman  of  the  committee  was  directed  to  commu- 
nicate this  plan  to  the  several  Conferences  in  the  West  for  their  considera- 
tion and  concurrence.  This  was  done,  and  many  of  those  Conferences 
took  favorable  action  on  it,  which  showed  that  they  were  not  only  ready  to 
adopt  the  outline  of  this  great  movement,  but  to  assist  in  carrying  it  out. 
The  committee,  as  instructed,  made  a  report  to  the  Cincinnati  Conference, 
held  in  the  city  September  23d,  1854. 

We  have  but  little  space,  and  can  make  but  a  short  extract  from  this 
report.    It  says: 

"  We  give  no  countenance  to  any  theory  which  goes  to  deprive  the 
black  man  of  his  full  share  in  our  common  humanity,  but  hail  him  as  a 
man,  a  brother,  in  accordance  with  that  grand  affirmation  of  the  Bible, 
which  must  forever  settle  the  unity  of  the  human  race,  that  God  1  hath 
made  of  one  blood  all  nations  of  men  for  to  dwell  on  the  face  of  the  earth.' 
Hence,  we  cordially  concede  our  obligation  to  do  good  to  the  colored  race 
according  to  our  ability  and  their  necessity.  Here,  then,  is  an  extensive 
field  open  for  benevolent  enterprise,  where  a  part  of  the  large  donations  of 
the  rich,  and  the  smaller  contributions  of  those  of  less  ability,  may  advan- 
tageously mingle  together,  and  where  the  patriot,  the  statesman,  and  the 
philanthropist  of  every  description  may  unite  in  the  accomplishment  of 
this  noble  work." 

Several  resolutions  were  appended  to  the  report.  One  recommended 
the  establishment  of  a  literary  institution  of  a  high  order  for  the  education 
of  the  colored  youth,  and  one  recommended  the  appointment  of  a  general 
agent.  The  report  was  adopted  by  the  Conference,  and  John  F.  Wright 
was  appointed  agent.  The  general  agent,  although  lie  had  to  serve  a  large 
district  as  presiding  elder,  labored  quite  extensively,  by  correspondence 
and  otherwise,  in  the  work  assigned  to  him,  bearing  his  own  expenses.  He 
succeeded  in  awakening  a  lively  interest  in  the  subject,  and  in  attracting 
the  attention  and  exciting  the  hopes  of  the  colored  people. 


T/n  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 


425 


At  the  session  of  the  Cincinnati  Conference,  September  28th,  L866,  the 
committee,  consisting  of  Kev.  C.  W.Swain,  A.  Lowery  and  M.  Dusfin,  to 
whom  was  referred  the  (deration  of  the  colored  people,  reported  the  follow- 
ing resolutions,  which  were  adopted  by  the  Conference: 

"  Resolved,  That  we  recommend  the  appointment  of  Rev.  .John  F.  Wright 
as  general  agent  for  the  Conference,  to  take  the  incipient  steps  for  a  col- 
lege for  the  colored  people  in  this  state. 

"  Resolved,  That  our  delegates  he,  and  an;  hereby,  instructed  to  bring  this 
subject  before  the  next  General  Conference  for  their  sanction  and  assistance. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  our  general  agent  to  co-operate  with 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Churches  in  promoting  Sabbath-schools 
and  other  educational  interests  of  the  colored  people." 

The  Conference  associated  with  their  general  agent,  C.  W.  Swain,  A. 
Lowery,  M.  Dustin  and  M.  French,  to  carry  out  the  first  resolution  having 
reference  to  the  eligible  and  valuable  Xenia  Springs  property  in  Greene 
county,  Ohio.  The  general  agent  and  the  committee  associated  with  him  held 
their  first  meeting  at  the  Methodist  Book  Concern,  Cincinnati,  on  the  31st 
of  October,  1855.  All  were  present  except  the  Kev.  C.  W.  Swain.  John  F. 
Wright  was  appointed  chairman,  and  M.  French  secretary.  At  this  meet- 
ing the  agent  was  authorized  to  commence  negotiating  with  the  owners  for 
the  purchase  of  the  Xenia  Springs  property,  that  being  preferred  by  the 
committee  as  the  most  eligible  location  for  such  an  institution.  The  agent 
was  also  authorized  to  make  an  offer  for  the  property,  and  to  solicit  sub- 
scriptions and  donations  for  the  object.  The  offer  made  by  the  agent  in 
behalf  of  the  committee  was  declined,  but  the  negotiations  were  continued 
till  the  amount  of  difference  between  the  parties  was  reduced  to  five  hun- 
dred dollars.  At  this  point  Mrs.  Judge  McLean  exerted  her  kind  influence 
in  bringing  about  a  contract  for  the  purchase.  An  offer  of  $13,500  was 
made  to  one  of  the  principal  owners,  who  laid  it  before  his  partner  in  the 
East,  and  as  no  answer  was  returned  to  the  western  owner  for  a  longer  time 
than  usual,  he  inferred  that  his  friend  approved  of  the  sale,  and  closed  the 
contract,  agreeing  to  the  payments  proposed,  and  so  informed  his  eastern 
partner.  The  former  letter  had  then  been  received,  and  he  objected  to  the 
terms  on  which  Mr.  D.  had  agreed  to  sell  the  property.  He  came  in  per- 
son, and  Messrs.  Wright  and  French,  after  a  long  interview,  received  from 
him  the  most  favorable  terms  upon  which  he  would  sell,  as  follows:  One- 
fourth  of  $13,500  to  be  paid  down,  or  a  note  given,  including  ten  per  cent, 
interest,  at  sixty  days,  with  personal  endorsers ;  the  balance  in  one  and 
two  years ;  notes  to  be  given  by  the  commissioners  of  the  Conference  for 
the  deferred  payments,  with  approved  personal  endorsers,  and  all  secured 
by  a  mortgage  on  the  property;  six  per  cent,  interest  to  be  paid  semi- 
annually ;  allowing  us  only  ten  days  to  consider  and  comply  with  the  con- 
ditions. Messrs.  Wright  and  French  soon  obtained  an  interview  with 
their  associates  at  the  General  Conference  at  Indianapolis,  and  after  a  de- 
liberate consultation  they  all,  except  Rev.  C.  W.  Swain,  agreed,  in  order  to 
secure  this  valuable  and  in  every  way  suitable  property  for  this  benevolent 
object,  that  they  would  sign  notes  for  the  amount,  and  do  what  they  could 


426 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


to  procure  endorsers.  In  the  meantime  this  philanthropic  work  had  been 
presented  to  the  General  Conference,  and  referred  to  a  committee  consist- 
ing of  Rev.  Cyrus  Brooks,  Z.  Connell,  Moses  Hill,  H.  C.  Pilcher,  M.  Dustin, 
F.  C.  Holliday  and  R.  Boyd.  On  the  22d  of  May,  1850,  through  their  chair- 
man, the  committee  made  their  report.  It  commences  with  a  history  of 
the  movement,  and  then  describes  the  Xenia  Springs  property,  including 
fifty-two  acres  of  ground,  with  a  large  edifice  with  numerous  rooms,  which 
are  well  adapted  for  the  purposes  of  a  boarding-house,  class  and  school- 
rooms, chapel,  etc.;  also,  several  cottages,  well  adapted  to  the  use  of  pri- 
vate families.  There  are  several  mineral  and  other  springs  on  the  prem- 
ises, the  whole  having  been  fitted  up  for  a  fashionable  watering  place  at  a 
cost  of  $50,000.  It  is  situated  in  Greene  county,  Ohio,  very  near  a  good 
turnpike  road,  about  midway  between  Cincinnati  and  Columbus,  and  near 
the  railway.  It  is  easy  of  access,  and  yet  retired  in  a  rural,  beautiful  and 
healthy  region,  and  in  nearly  as  mild  a  climate  as  can  be  obtained  north  of 
the  Ohio  river. 

The  following  resolutions,  with  the  whole  report,  were  adopted  by  the 
Conference  with  great  unanimity,  and  without  an  expressed  objection: 

"Resolved,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  General  Conference,  the  religious 
education  of  the  people  of  color  in  our  land  will  tend  most  effectually  and 
speedily,  under  God,  to  their  elevation  in  this  country,  and  to  prepare  the 
way  for  the  restoration  of  the  benighted  millions  of  down-trodden  Africa 
to  all  the  blessings  of  civilization,  science  and  religion. 

"Resolved,  That  we  look  upon  the  proposed  plan  for  the  education  of  the 
colored  youth  of  our  land  as  of  God,  and  aw  promising  great  good  to  the 
people  of  color  among  us,  and  untold  blessings  to  the  land  of  their  ances- 
tors; and  we  do  most  earnestly  recommend  this  noble  work  to  the  sympathy, 
the  prayeis,  and  the  generous  benefactions  of  all  who  desire  the  elevation 
of  the  entire  family  of  man. 

' 1  Resolved,  That  we  bespeak  for  the  agents  of  this  enterprise  a  cordial 
reception  on  the  part  of  all  Christians  and  philanthropists,  hoping  that 
they  may  be  successful  not  only  in  awakening  sympathy  and  enlisting 
prayeis,  hut  also  in  gathering  funds  to  pay  for  the  endowment  of  the  insti- 
tution, so  as  to  place  it  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  best  institutions  of 
learning  in  our  country." 

Messrs.  Wright  and  French  with  great  pleasure  heard  of  the  favorable 
action  of  the  General  Conference,  and  applied  themselves  with  increased 
exertions  to  comply  with  the  conditions  made  by  Mr.  B.,  the  hardest  of 
which  seemed  to  be  to  procure  men  from  pure  philanthropy  to  endorse 
their  notes.  Yet  they  found  business  men  who  determined  to  take  the 
risk  for  the  sake  of  advancing  the  intellectual  and  moral  improvement  of 
the  most  neglected  and  needy  portion  of  our  population.  It  was  known 
that  another  party  stood  ready  to  close  the  contract  with  the  owners  if  they 
failed,  offering  $1,500  more.  They  had  until  Saturday,  the  24th  of  May,  to 
meet  the  conditions,  and  by  diligence  and  continuous  efforts  the  last 
endorser  was  obtained  half  an  hour  before  midnight,  at  which  the  time 
allowed  expired.    As  they  are  deemed  worthy  of  imperishable  honor,  we 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 


427 


render  the  small  tribute  of  here  recording  their  names,  with  a  clear  convic- 
tion that  their  record  is  on  high,  and  a  strong  hope  that  they  will  have  a 
brighter  and  more  enduring  reward  in  the  decisions  of  the  great  day.  The 
names  are  William  Wood,  Alexander  Webb,  John  Dubois  and  Morris  8. 
Hopper.  The  general  agent  advanced  $375,  and  for  the  balance  of  the  cash 
payment,  $3,000,  a  note  was  given  at  sixty  days,  endorsed  by  William 
Wood,  John  Elstner  and  W.  B.  Smith  &  Co. — names  never  to  be  forgotten. 
This  enterprise  was  commenced  by  faith  in  that  God  who  hath  respect  unto 
the  lowly,  and  who  can  control  the  hearts  of  all  men,  and  its  friends  have 
cause  to  thank  God  and  take  courage. 

Immediately  after  the  purchase  the  general  agent  entered  upon  his  work 
of  soliciting  funds  to  meet  the  note  of  $3,000,  due  in  sixty  days.  He  col- 
lected some  in  the  West,  and  going  to  the  East,  he  had  some  success  in  New 
York,  Boston,  Providence,  Woonsocket,  New  Bedford,  and  other  places  in 
New  England  aad  New  York.  It  ought  to  be  said,  to  the  honor  of  Dr. 
W.  G.  Palmer,  that  a  few  days  before  the  note  matured,  he  loaned  the 
agent,  on  his  individual  note,  the  sum  of  $1,000,  by  which,  with  other 
funds,  the  note  was  paid. 

On  the  30th  day  of  August,  1850,  application  was  made  in  due  form  to 
the  authorities  of  Greene  county,  in  the  state  of  Ohio,  for  the  benefit  of  the 
general  law  of  the  state,  passed  April  9th,  1852,  and  every  requisition  of  the 
law  being  complied  with,  the  institution  was  organized  and  constituted  a 
body  corporate  under  the  name  of  the  "  Wilberforce  University."  The 
corporators  adopted  articles  of  association,  and  elected  a  board  of  twenty- 
three  trustees.  Some  changes  have  taken  place  in  the  board  since  its  first 
organization.  The  present  catalogue,  however,  will  show  the  names  of  the 
members  of  the  board  as  it  now  exists.  At  the  first  meeting,  John  F. 
Wright  was  elected  president,  and  M.  French,  secretary.  Rev.  Professor 
F.  Merrick  was  elected  president  of  the  University.  There  was,  however, 
no  demand  at  that  time  for  his  services  at  the  institution,  and  the  school 
was  supplied  with  teachers  for  the  time  being  as  they  were  needed.  Rev. 
M.  P.  Gaddis,  Jr.,  was  the  first  teacher  employed.  He  was  assisted  by  his 
wife.  They  served  for  six  months,  at  the  end  of  which  time  they  gave 
place  to  Professor  James  K.  Parker,  who  served  successfully  two  years. 
Professor  Parker  served  as  principal  from  February,  1857,  to  July,  1858,  and 
then  retired  with  the  commendation  of  the  board.  ■ 

Prof.  Merrick  having  declined  to  serve,  on  the  30th  of  June,  1858,  Rev. 
Richard  S.  Rust,  a  distinguished  member  of  the  New  Hampshire  Confer- 
ence, was  unanimously  elected  president  of  the  institution.  When  offi- 
cially notified  of  his  ehction,  after  finding  that  he  could  be  released  from 
an  important  pastoral  charge,  he  signified  his  willingness  to  accept  the 
appointment,  and  at  the  commencement  of  the  fall  term  he  entered  upon 
his  work.  He  has  shown  himself  well  qualified  for  the  position  and  emi- 
nently successful  in  his  work.  The  number  of  students  has  varied  from 
seventy  to  one  hundred.  Many  of  them  are  very  promising,  and  some 
have  made  remarkable  proficiency  in  their  studies.  Every  year  the  school 
has  been  visited  with  a  gracious  revival  of  religion,  and  many  of  the 


428 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


pupils  have  been  made  the  happy  subjects  of  a  work  of  grace,  which  is 
deemed  all-important  to  their  usefulness  in  life. 

This  benevolent  scheme  is  based  on  the  supposition  that  the  colored 
man  must,  for  the  most  part,  be  the  educator  and  elevator  of  his  own  race 
in  this  and  other  lands.  Hence,  a  leading  object  of  the  institution  is  to 
educate  and  thoroughly  train  many  of  them  for  professional  teachers,  or 
for  any  other  position  or  pursuit  in  life  to  which  God,  in  his  providence  or 
by  his  spirit,  may  call  them.  It  has  been  a  cherished  idea  with  the 
founders  of  the  institution  that  a  theological  department  should  be  organ- 
ized at  the  earliest  period  possible,  in  which  young  men  called  of  God  to 
preach  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ  might  receive  that  aid  so  essen- 
tial to  prepare  them  for  this  great  work.  We  are  happy  to  learn  that  sev- 
eral young  men  have  already  entered  this  department  who  give  promise  of 
great  usefulness  to  the  Church  and  the  world.  .  Our  enterprise  has  enlisted 
the  hearts  and  received  the  favor  of  some  distinguished  statesmen  and 
other  citizens  of  our  common  country,  and  is  designed  to  unite  and  engage 
the  efforts  of  all  Christians  and  philanthropists.  Several  of  the  leading 
denominations  of  Christians  are  represented  in  the  board  of  trustees.  We 
have  good  reason  to  believe  this  work  is  of  God,  that  His  hand  is  in  it,  and 
His  blessings  will  be  upon  it ;  and,  therefore,  we  hope  for  good  success. 

Immediate  Results. 

The  catalogue  of  1859-60  shows  a  roll  of  two  hundred  and  seven  students, 
the  majority  of  whom  are  the  natural  children  of  southern  and  south- 
western planters.  These  came  from  the  plantations,  with  nothing  men- 
tally but  the  ignorance,  superstition  and  vices  which  slavery  engenders ; 
but  departed  with  so  much  intellectual  and  moral  culture  as  to  be  qualified 
to  be  teachers  in  several  of  the  Western  states,  and  immediately  after  the 
overthrow  of  slavery  entered  their  native  regions  as  teachers  of  the  freed- 
man.  A  large  number  of  students  were  gathered  from  the  free  states. 
These  derived  the  greater  benefit  from  the  instruction  given  at  Wilber- 
force,  and  were  prepared  for  a  higher  sphere  of  usefulness.  Dr.  Rust  had 
also  formed  a  class  in  the  classics  and  mathematics,  another  in  French, 
and  a  third  had  commenced  theological  studies,  of  whom  were  six  young 
men  who  have  since  distinguished  themselves  in  the  pastoral  and  other 
fields  of  usefulness,  covering  politics,  the  military  service  of  the  United 
States,  and  the  publishing  department  of  the  African  M.  E.  Church.  One 
of  these  ran  a  short  but  glorious  career  as  pastor,  and  since  has  gone  to 
enjoy  the  "  saints'  everlasting  rest." 

WlLBER  FORCE  UNDER  THE  AUSPICES  OF  THE  A.  M.  E.  CHURCH. 

On  the  10th  of  March,  1863,  between  9  and  10  o'clock  p.  m.,  one  of  the 
Bishops  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  agreed  with  the  original  trustees'*  of  Wil- 
berforce  University  to  purchase  the  property  for  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  to 


*The  original  trustees  consisted  of  twenty-four  persons,  four  of  whom 
were  colored. 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 


429 


be  used  as  an  institution  of  education  for  the  colored  race,  which  was  at 
the  time  excluded  from  all  the  schools  of  higher  education,  excepting  two 
or  throe,  of  which  Oberlin  was  chief.  Their  admission  into  others,  if 
admitted  at  all,  was  on  such  conditions  as  few  persons  of  color  would 
accept.  This  Bishop  associated  with  himself  Rev.  James  A .  Shorter  and 
Mr.  John  G.  Mitchell,  who  was  at  that  time  principal  of  a  graded  school  in 
the  city  of  Cincinnati.  These  persons  applied  for  and  obtained  a  new 
chatter  for  Wilberforcc  in  the  name  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  according  to 
the  general  law  of  Ohio.  Under  this  charter  they  organized  a  new  hoard 
of  trustees,  and  the  school  was  reopened  on  the  3d  day  of  July,  186:5,  by 
Professor  John  G.  Mitchell.  Only  six  children  were;  present.  They  were 
put  upon  the  study  of  elementary  English.  During  the  first  ten  months 
the  school  gradually  increased  in  members,  and  progressed  in  knowledge. 
Professor  Mitchell  was  aided  by  his  wife,  Mrs.  Fannie  A.  Mitchell.  At  the 
opening  of  the  spring  of  1864  the  increasing  members  demanded  another 
teacher,  and  Miss  Esther  T.  Maltby,  of  Oberlin,  then  a  teacher  in  the 
schools  of  the  American  Missionary  Society,  at  Portsmouth,  Va.,  was 
secured  as  lady  principal  and  matron.  She  reached  Wilberforce  with  a 
Greek  Testament  in  her  hand.  It  was  her  traveling  companion  all  along 
the  journey  from  Portsmouth  to  Xenia.  This  circumstance  I  am  particu- 
lar to  mention,  because  the  fact  furnished  us  with  a  key  to  her  character, 
as  it  seemed  to  have  colored  her  whole  life  ever  since.  She  was  an  excel- 
lent Greek  and  Latin  scholar,  a  good  mathematician,  and  has  no  superior 
that  I  ever  saw  as  a  disciplinarian.  Zealous  for  the  moral  purity  of  the 
children  and  youth  committed  to  her  care,  she  labored  day  and  night  to 
induce  them  to  be  Christians  as  well  as  scholars.  The  ordinary  religious 
services  of  the  institution  were  not  sufficient  for  her;  she,  therefore,  held 
an  extra  prayer-meeting  every  morning,  from  eight  to  half  past  eight 
o'clock,  in  which  she  read  the  Holy  Scriptures,  exhorted,  sang  and  prayed 
with  those  who  were  willing  to  attend  her  meetings,  and  succeeded  in 
leading  many  from  their  vices  to  lead  an  upright  life,  among  whom  was  a 
very  playful  and  mischievous  lad  by  the  name  of  Thomas  H.  Jackson,  who 
united  with  the  College  Church,  graduated  from  the  theological  depart- 
ment of  the  university,  filled  the  chair  of  ecclesiastical  history,  pastoral 
theology  and  homiletics  for  two  years  at  Wilberforce,  served  in  the  pas- 
toral of  a  large  church  at  Columbia,  S.  C.,  for  three  years,  and  at  the  last 
annual  meeting  of  the  trustees  was  elected  to  fill  the  same  chair. 

Then  came  the  catastrophe  of  1865.  Professor  Mitchell  had  been  con- 
strained by  the  wants  of  the  school  to  go  out  as  a  financial  agent.  The 
management  of  the  school  was  left  solely  to  Miss  Maltby,  and,  under  God, 
it  was  increasing  in  numbers  and  popularity.  The  progress  of  the  students 
was  commendable,  and  classes  were  formed  in  Greek,  Latin  and  lower 
mathematics.  Everything  indicated  a  prosperous  future,  when  suddenly 
the  buildings  were  set  on  fire  by  an  incendiary.  Within  half  an  hour  the 
beautiful  edifice  was  nothing  but  smouldering  embers.  The  catastrophe 
fell  upon  us  like  a  clap  of  thunder  in  a  clear  sky.  It  was  a  time  of  lamen- 
tation for  our  friends  and  rejoicing  for  our  enemies.    Said  one  of  the 


430 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


latter:  "Now  their  buildings  are  burned,  there  is  no  hope  for  them." 
Another  said :  "  I  wish  lightning  from  heaven  would  burn  down  Wilber- 
force."  This  one  supposed  that  his  impious  prayer  was  more  than  an- 
swered. But  we  believed  and  said:  "Out  of  the  ashes  of  the  beautiful 
frame  building  a  nobler  one  shall  arise."  Mr.  Mitchell  had  gone  to  Xenia 
with  almost  all  of  the  students  to  witness  the  celebration  of  the  fall  of 
Richmond.  Two  obstreperous  female  students  were  detained  on  the 
grounds  by  way  of  punishment  for  acts  of  disobedience.  I  was  attending 
the  Conference  at  Baltimore,  and  Miss  Maltby  was  left  alone.  No;  she 
was  not  alone.  As  God  was  with  Daniel  in  the  lion's  den,  and  with  his 
three  brethren  in  the  fiery  furnace,  so  was  He  with  her  in  the  trouble  at 
Wilberforce.  Without  faltering  one  of  the  cottages  was  converted  into  a 
school-room,  and  the  scholars  taught  therein  till  the  last  of  June,  which 
terminated  the  academic  year,  after  which  all  the  students  from  abroad 
went  home.  The  majority  of  the  advanced  students  never  returned,  but 
went  to  other  institutions.  Those  who  preferred  Wilberforce  came  back 
the  next  autumn.  Meanwhile,  we  began  to  mature  our  plans  for  rebuild- 
ing. The  result  is  before  the  country.  The  edifice  will  be  finished  and 
dedicated  next  summer,  and  will  be  a  larger,  finer  and  nobler  edifice  than 
the  former.  As  respects  the  school,  it  passed  through  severe  trials.  Miss 
Maltby's  nervous  system  was  so  affected  by  the  catastrophe  that  for  twelve 
months  she  was  unfit  for  labor,  and  never  returned.  She  is  now  a  mis- 
sionary in  Asia  Minor,  in  the  service  of  the  A.  B.  C.  F.  M.  Professor 
Mitchell  was  compelled  to  be  in  the  field  soliciting  funds  to  aid  us  in  re- 
building, and,  therefore,  for  a  season,  the  management  of  the  school  fell 
upon  our  most  advanced  student,  Mr.  J.  P.  .Shorter,  who  acted  his  part 
nobly,  until  we  were  able  to  secure  competent  professors,  who  were  soon 
found  in  the  persons  of  Professor  Theodore  E.  Suliot,  Professor  William 
Kent  and  Miss  Sarah  J.  Woodson. 

Opening  of  the  Departments. 

The  Theological  and  Classical  Departments  were  opened  in  the  autumn 
of  1866,  the  Scientific  in  1867,  and  the  Normal  in  1872.  Graduates  have 
gone  forth  from  all  these  departments  except  the  Law,  and  only  three  have 
been  put  upon  the  study  of  law. 

Graduates  from  the  Theological  Department. 


Rev.  John  T.  Jenifer,  B.  D    1870 

Rev.  Thomas  H.  Jackson,  B.  D  1870 

Rev.  Isaiah  H.  Welsh,  B.  D  1870 

Rev.  Benjamin  F.  Lee,  B.  D  1872 

Rev.  George  T.  Robinson,  B.  D  1872 

Rev.  Charles  E.  Herbet,  B.  D  1872 

Rev.  John  W.  Becker,  B.  D  1872 

Rev.  Henry  A.  Knight,  B.  D  1875 

Rev.  John  Coleman,  B.  D  1875 

Rev.  John  G.  Yeiser,  B.  D  1876 

Rev.  George  C.  Whitfield,  B.  D  1876 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers.  431 


Classical  Department. 

Mr.  Joseph  P.  Shorter,  A.  B  1871 

Mr.  Samuel  T.  Mitchell,  A.  B  1873 

Mr.  Alexander  D.  Delaney,  A.  B  1873 

Miss  Julia  A.  Shorter,  A.  B  1873 

Miss  Mary  E.  Davis,  A.  B  1874 

Mr.  Samuel  R.  Bailey,  A.  B  1874 

Mr.  Andrew  T.  Bowles,  A.  B  1870 

Normal  Department. 

Miss  Almira  Copeland,  B.  E    1873 

Miss  Virginia  Copeland,  B.  E  1873 

Miss  Maggie  E.  Crabbe,  B.  E  1873 

Miss  Carrie  L.  Jenkins,  B.  E  1873 

Miss  Ella  J.  Green,  B.  E  1873 

Miss  Elizabeth  W.  Baker,  B.  E..  1876 

Scientific  Department. 

Miss  Lottie  P.  Harris,  B.  S  1872 

Miss  Hallie  Q.  Brown,  B.  S  1873 

Miss  Mary  E,  Ashe,  B.  S  1875 

Miss  Ella  Z.  Jenkins,  B.  S  1875 

Miss  ZeliaR.  Ball,  B.  S  1875 


Succession  of  Principals,  Professors  and  Teachers  Under  the  Auspices 
oe  the  Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church. 

I.  - -Rev.  M.  P.  Gaddis,  Jr.,  Principal;  Mrs.  M.  P.  Gaddis,  Assistant; 
served  six  months. 

II.  — Professor  James  K.  Parker,  Principal ;  Mrs.  James  K.  Parker, 
Matron ;  Miss  Maggie  Baker,  Teacher  of  Music ;  Miss  Mary  J.  Allen, 
Teacher  of  English  for  two  years. 

III.  — Rev.  Richard  S.  Rust,  D.  D.  President  (Wesleyan  University),  Pro- 
fessor of  Theology  and  Mental  Science ;  George  W.  Wendell,  A.  M.  (Wes- 
leyan University),  Professor  of  Languages  and  Natural  Sciences;  Mary  J. 
Allen  (Wesleyan  University),  Preceptress,  Teacher  of  French  and  Mathe- 
matics; Sarah  J.  Woodson  (Oberlin),  Teacher  of  English  Departments; 
Miss  Adelaide  Warren  (Oberlin),  Teacher  of  Instrumental  and  Vocal 
Music.  Professor  Wendell  was  succeeded  by  Professor  Phiny  S.  Boyd, 
A.  B.  (Oberlin) ;  Miss  Warren  by  Miss  BufRngton,  of  New  York ;  and 
Miss  M.  J.  Allen  by  Miss  Isabella  Oakley. 

Succession  Under  the  Auspices  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
From  1863  to  1865. 
Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  D.  D.  (Gettysburg),  President,  Professor  of 
Christian  Theology,  Mental  Science  and  Church  Government;  John  G. 
Mitchell,  A.  M.  (Oberlin),  Professor  of  Greek,  Latin  and  Mathematics; 
Miss  Esther  T.  Maltby,  A.  B.  (Oberlin),  Lady  Principal,  Matron,  and  Sec- 


432 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


retary  of  Faculty  ;  Miss  Fannie  A.  Mitchell  (Oberlin),  Assistant  Teacher 
and  head  of  Intermediate  Department. 

From  1866  to  1868. 

Rt.  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne,  D.  D.,  President  (Gettysburg  Theological  Semi- 
nary) ;  Professor  John  G.  Mitchell,  A.  M.  (Oberlin) ;  Rev.  William  Kent, 
M.  D.  (England),  Professor  of  Natural  Science;  Theodore  E.  Suliot,  A.  M. 
(Edinburg,  Scotland),  Professor  of  Latin  and  French  Literature,  and  Ad- 
junct Professor  of  Mathematics;  Miss  Sarah  J.  Woodson  (Oberlin),  Pre- 
ceptress of  English  and  Latin,  and  Lady  Principal  and  Matron.  Miss 
Woodson  was  succeeded  by  Miss  Josephine  Jackson,  B.  S.  (Adrian,  Mich.). 

From  1868  to  1869. 

This  year  finds  Bishop  Payne  still  acting  as  President,  but  not  as  a  Pro- 
fessor, the  Theological  Department  being  managed  wholly  by  Professor 
Henry  C.  Fry,  A.  M.,  of  Oberlin.  Professor  John  Smith,  of  Oberlin,  suc- 
ceeded Professor  Mitchell;  Mrs.  Messenger  succeeded  Miss  Josephine 
Jackson;  Rev.  Thomas  H.  Jackson,  B.  D.  (Wilberforce  University),  Pro- 
fessor of  Ecclesiastical  History,  Homiletics and  Pastoral  Theology;  William 
B.  Adams,  A.  M.  (Amherst),  Professor  of  Greek  Exegesis  and  Adjunct 
Professor  of  Mathematics;  Dr.  Wilson,  Teacher  of  Hebrew  and  Hebrew 
Exegesis;  Roswell  Howard,  A.  M.,  B.  L,  Professor  of  Law;  Hon.  John 
Little,  Professor  of  Law;  Mrs.  Alice  M.  Adams  (Holyoke),  Lady  Principal, 
Matron,  and  Teacher  of  English.  The  latter  was  succeeded  by  Miss  Lenore 
Congdon.  Miss  Parker  was  of  the  AVesleyan  Female  Seminary,  Oxford, 
Ohio;  Miss  Congdon,  of  Oberlin. 

From  1870  to  1876. 

Bishop  D.  A.  Payne,  President.  Professor  Jackson  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  B.  F.  Lee  (Wilberforce  University).  Benjamin  K.  Samson,  A.  M. 
(Oberlin),  succeeded  Professor  Mortimer  as  Professor  of  Latin,  Greek  and 
Mathematics,  and  Secretary  of  the  Faculty.  Rev.  Benjamin  F.  Lee  is  in 
turn  succeeded  by  Professor  Thomas  A.  Jackson  and  Professor  Sampson. 
The  chair  is  now  filled  by  Professor  J.  P.  Shorter,  the  first  graduate  from 
our  Classical  Department.  Miss  McBride  was  succeeded  by  Miss  Ella  J. 
Greene  in  all  things  excepting  the  Languages. 

Our  methods  in  the  Classical  and  Mathematical  Departments  are  the 
same  as  generally  obtained  in  American  colleges. 

In  the  Normal  Department  we  have  the  methods  of  Oswego.  In  the 
practicing  schools  of  the  Normal  Department  there  is  nothing  peculiar  but 
our  methods  of  teaching  orthography  and  orthcepy— here  we  employ  anal- 
ysis— that  is  to  say,  immediately  after  a  pupil  has  spelled  a  word,  he  is 
required  to  tell  how  many  vowels  and  how  many  consonants  it  contains ; 
to  give  the  quality  and  quantity  of  every  vowel ;  and  to  distinguish 
the  characteristics  of  the  sub-vocals  and  the  aspirates.  Wre  deem  this  the 
best  method  of  teaching  the  art  of  spelling,  because  it  is  most  thorough, 
and  also  because,  when  the  principle  is  continually  applied,  and  the  habit 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 


433 


is  formed  in  subsequent  life,  the  individual  will  be  satisfied  with  nothing 
short  of  a  thorough  knowledge  of  any  object  which  he  may  undertake  to 
scrutinize,  or  any  subject  he  may  begin  to  investigate. 

In  our  Theological  Department  we  employ  both  the  inductive  and  de- 
ductive methods,  allowing  the  largest  liberty  of  investigation  and  expres- 
sion, excepting  that  which  borders  upon  impiety  and  blasphemy. 

Our  aim  is  to  make  Christian  scholars  not  mere  book  worms,  but  work-, 
ers,  educated  workers  with  God  for  man,  to  effect  which  we  employ  not  the 
classics  and  mathematics  only,  but  science  and  philosophy — the  former 
for  their  discriminating,  polishing  and  cultivating  influences;  the  latter  for 
the  quickness  and  exactness  which  they  impart  to  the  cognitive  faculty, 
and  the  seed  thoughts  which  they  never  fail  to  sow  in  the  mind.  And  we 
hold  that  the  classics  and  mathematics,  as  science  and  philosophy,  can  and 
must  be  consecrated  to  human  well-being  by  teaching  the  sentiments  and 
the  spirit  of  Jesus. 

Our  social  surroundings:  We  are  in  the  midst  of  a  farming  region,  im- 
mediately encircled  by  ten  families,  who  are  educating  their  children  in 
our  school — some  of  them  formerly  students,  who,  since  they  left  us,  have 
married,  and  are  now  in  their  turn  educating  their  children  in  their  own 
Alma  Mater.  The  influence  of  the  college  upon  their  children  is  manifest 
not  only  in  their  manners,  but  also  in  their  talents ;  for,  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  to  one  hundred  and  fifty-three  students  who  have  annually 
filled  our  halls  during  the  last  four  j^ears,  none  surpass  them  in  mental 
powers,  and  very  few  equal  them  in  capacity  or  ability. 

The  Grounds. 

The  real  estate  of  Wilberforce  contains  fifty-three  acres  of  land  finely 
timbered,  and  abundantly  watered  with  mineral  springs.  The  campus 
embraces  about  ten  acres,  five  in  front  and  five  in  the  rear.  It  is  traversed 
by  a  ravine  which  at  certain  points  becomes  so  deep  as  to  eclipse  the  apex 
of  the  cupola,  ninety-two  feet  high.  Its  meanderings  are  east,  southeast  by 
north,  flanking  and  moulding  the  rear  of  the  campus  into  graceful  curves 
and  slopes,  producing  the  form  of  a  miniature  table  land,  sharply  defined 
and  beautiful.  The  front  is  level,  with  a  slight  indenture  running  south- 
ward.   It  is  shaded  by  forest  trees  and  a  few  evergreens. 

Our  property  consists  of  fifty-two  acres  of  undulating  land,  which  was 
heavily  timbered  when  we  bought  it  in  1863.  It  is  traversed  by  a  deep 
ravine,  through  which  a  murmuring  streamlet  meanders  winter  and  sum- 
mer. At  the  time  of  its  purchase  there  were  five  mineral  springs  running 
out  of  the  sides  of  this  ravine,  which  are  at  present  reduced  to  three, 
caused  by  the  diminishing  of  the  timber,  which  has  been  cut  down  for 
fuel  and  other  purposes. 

The  Buildings. 

On  these  fifty-two  acres  of  land  we  have  ten  buildings,  exclusive  of  a 
barn  and  stable.    Nine  of  these  buildings  are  cottages  erected  within  the 
campus.   They  are  inhabited  chiefly  by  students  and  families  who  came 
28 


434 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


to  educate  their  children  under  college  restrictions  and  influences.  The 
main  edifice  is  built  in  the  center  of  the  campus.  The  foundations  are 
of  solid  limestone.  The  superstructure  is  of  red  brick,  three  stories  above 
the  basement,  and  44x160  feet.  It  embraces  a  center  and  two  wings;  the 
center  is  40x52,  the  wings  40x60.  This  building  contains  eight  recitation 
rooms  and  one  lecture  room,  one  art  and  one  music  room,  one  library  and 
a  large  hall  to  be  filled  up  as  a  museum.  It  has  also  five  dormitories,  with 
forty  bed-rooms  and  sleeping  accommodations  for  eighty  persons.  The 
basement  contains  fifteen  rooms,  which  embrace  the  kitchen,  pantry,  store- 
rooms, dining-hall,  laundry  and  sleeping  apartments  for  all  connected  with 
the  culinary  and  laundry  work.  When  the  dormitories  and  cottages  are 
filled,  the  students  often  find  comfortable  accommodations  in  the  commo- 
dious basement. 

Our  Library  and  Museum. 

The  library  contains  about  three  thousand  bound  volumes,  and  three 
hundred  pamphlets.  The  most  of  them  are  useful.  Among  these  are  few 
books  of  reference.  We  have  none  that  can  be  considered  as%rare.  Our 
museum  is  so  small  that  we  call  it  nothing  more  than  the  nucleus  of  a 
future  one.  * 

Grateful  Recollections  of  Benevolence. 

Before  concluding  this  historical  sketch  it  seems  proper  to  make  our 
very  existence  an  unquestionable  fact ;  for  at  that  time  some  of  our  own 
short-sighted  people,  for  whose  special  benefit  we  have  always  planned 
and  executed,  had  formally  denied  it. 

In  March,  1863,  through  the  influence  of  Dr.  Rust,  our  friends  of  the 
Cincinnati  Conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  sold  us  property 
for  its  indebtedness,  which  was  $10,000,  and  that,  too,  at  the  time  when  an 
agent  of  the  state  of  Ohio  stood  anxious  to  buy  it  at  a  much  larger  price 
for  an  asylum;  and  from  others  they  could  have  obtained  from  one  to 
two-thirds  more  than  we  were  able  to  give.  Their  liberality  placed  a  valu- 
able seat  of  learning,  with  at  least  a  thousand  dollars'  worth  of  furniture, 
within  our  reach ;  and  therefore  we  ought  to  be  grateful. 

In  1867-68  the  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Collegiate  and  Theological 
Education  at  the  West  aided  us  in  the  sum  of  $1,800. 

Let  it  be  remembered  that  we  were  burned  out  in  1865.  In  1867  we  had 
erected  the  western  wing  of  our  edifice;  but  its  walls  were  not  only  un- 
pictured,  and  its  floors  uncarpeted,  but  they  were  unplastered  and  rough  ; 
all  around  us  presented  an  uninviting  aspect. 

At  my  earnest  invitation,  the  good  secretary,  Dr.  Theron  Baldwin,  came. 
He  saw  the  appalling  obstacles  which  we  had  to  face  and  overcome.  His 
soul  was  stirred  to  its  depths,  and  his  eloquent  plea  in  our  behalf  induced 
the  society  to  vote  us  $1,800  for  the  year  1867.  In  1868-69  they  again  voted 
us  $1,800.  Although  the  funds  of  the  society  did  not  enable  them  to  make 
good  the  whole  of  this  last  vote,  what  we  did  receive  was  of  signal  benefit, 
and  we  are  therefore  thankful. 


*In  1883  a  museum,  small  but  perfect,  and  valued  at  $2,000,  was  built 
by  Professor  Ward,  gf  Rochester,  N.  Y. 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers. 


436 


The  American  Unitarian  Association  aided  us  from  1868  to  1875  at  an 
average  of  $500  per  annum.  The  first  twelve  months  of  that  time  they  gave 
us  $800.  In  all,  about  $4,000  have  been  received  from  them  for  purely  ed- 
ucational purposes.  We  have  also  received  benefit  in  the  form  of  lectures 
in  different  branches  of  the  natural  sciences,  including  experimental 
physics;  also  lectures  on  literature  and  philosophy.  The  lectures  on  liter- 
ature were  both  biblical  and  secular.  They  were  delivered  by  the  scholarly 
professors  of  Antioch,  and  have  been  very  serviceable  to  our  graduates,  not 
only  in  stimulating  them  to  deeper  research,  but  also  in  publishing  their 
style,  for  which  we  ought  to  be  grateful. 

To  construct  our  new  edifice  Rev.  R.  S.  Rust,  D.  D.,  and  Rev.  J.  F. 
Wright,  D.  D.,  each  gave  us  $100. 

For  our  Endowment  Fund,  John  Pfaff,  Esq.,  of  Cincinnati,  and  P.  P. 
Mast,  Esq.,  of  Springfield  O.,  each  has  subscribed  $500.  The  latter  is  to 
pay  his  subscription  some  time  in  the  coming  summer.  In  1868  that  noble 
philanthropist,  Hon.  Gerritt  Smith,  sent  us  $500 ;  the  same  year  the  equally 
noble  Chief  Justice  Chase  induced  an  English  gentleman  to  send  us  $300 ; 
subsequently,  the  Chief  Justice  gave  us  $250;  and  in  his  last  will  be- 
queathed us  $10,000.  In  this  last  instance  he  magnified  his  greatness  in 
making  us.  who  are  the  poorest  of  God's  poor  in  the  United  States,  the 
first  object  of  his  considerate  benevolence.  Mow  and  here,  we  record  the 
facts  that  in  1869  we  received  through  General  Howard  from  the  Freed- 
man's  Bureau,  $3,000 ;  and  in  1870  we  received  from  the  same  source,  by 
special  act  of  Congress,  $25,000,  for  all  of  which  we  ought  to  be  grateful. 
Total  from  the  Freedman's  Bureau,  $28,000.  All  this  has  been  spent  in 
building,  excepting  $3,125,  which  was  paid  to  the  agent  as  percentage. 
Concerning  our  benefactors  whose  earthly  career  has  been  finished,  we 
hope  they  may  be  rewarded  at  the  "resurrection  of  the  just."  Concern- 
ing those  who  are  still  living,  we  pray  that  they  and  theirs  may  never  lack 
a  friend  nor  aid  in  the  time  of  need  or  the  day  of  adversity. 

College  Societies. 

The  Society  of  Inquiry  on  Missions  was  organized  by  the  president  for 
the  purpose  of  collecting  information  concerning  Christian  missions  from 
all  sources,  foreign  and  domestic,  and  to  cultivate  the  spirit  of  missions  in 
the  theological  students,  for  whose  especial  benefit  the  organization  was 
brought  into  existence.  Since  then  other  persons  have  been  admitted  to 
membership,  but  the  extension  of  this  privilege  to  persons  not  members 
of  the  theological  department  has,  in  some  respect,  damaged  the  original 
character  of  the  society. 

The  Sodalian  Society  was  organized  by  the  students,  the  present  Pro- 
fessor Shorter,  then  a  student,  being  their  leader.  It  is  a  debating  club. 
Its  design  is  mutual  improvement  in  composition,  disputation  and  oratory. 

Outside  of  the  institution,  but  connected  with  it  by  bonds  of  earnest 
friendship,  is  the  College  Aid  Society,  consisting  chiefly  of  married  ladies 
and  some  of  the  oldest  female  students.  Its  aim  is  declared  in  its  name. 
The  society  came  into  existence  through  the  wants  of  the  college,  and  has 
rendered  signal  services  to  the  university  in  times  of  embarrassment. 


436 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Wilberforce  University  Endowment  Association,  outside  of  the  institu- 
tion, consists  chiefly  of  ministers  and  laymen  of  the  Ohio,  Pittsburg  and 
Kentucky  Conferences,  who  are  earnest  workers  in  its  behalf,  and  con- 
nected with  it  by  a  friendship  as  sincere  as  it  is  earnest.  Its  object  is  the 
permanent  endowment  of  professorships  and  scholarships. 

Boarding  Facilities. 

Students  can  board  in  families  for  $2.00  to  $2.50  per  week.  A  boarding 
club,  consisting  of  the  students,  including  both  sexes,  is  called  the  Mutual 
Relief  Association.  Board  is  furnished  by  the  club  for  SI. 50  per  week. 
The  initiation  fee  is  $3.20,  including  the  first  week's  board  ;  so  that  the 
first  month's  board  will  cost  a  new  member  $7.50  ;  after  that,  only  $6.00 
per  month.  It  was  first  managed  by  a  steward,  a  secretary  and  a  treasurer, 
elected  from  among  themselves ;  but  at  the  end  of  every  year  they  were 
involved  in  debt.  At  the  end  of  three  years  it  was  found  that  their  man- 
agement was  ruinous  ;  since  then  it  has  been  gratuitously  managed  by  one 
of  our  professors,  who  has  not  only  kept  the  club  out  of  debt,  but  has  had 
a  surplus  for  it  at  the  end  of  the  college  year.  They  hire  a  cook,  but  take 
turn  to  wait  upon  the  table,  thus  reducing  their  expenses  to  the  minimum. 
The  young. men  do  the  heavier  part  of  the  work;  the  young  women  the 
lighter. 

Sources  of  Income  and  Present  Condition. 

As  respects  endowment  of  professorships,  we  have  an  endowment  of 
$2,300,  which  yields  assistance  to  two  students,  giving  each  the  sum  of 
$70.50  annually.  Ten  thousand  dollars  of  the  Avery  estate  have  been  set 
apart  for  our  benefit ;  the  interest  at  6  per  cent,  is  paid  over  to  us  semi- 
annually. Our  Church  treasury  yields  us  an  average  of  $1 ,000  annually, 
tuition  fees  and  rents  amounting  to  about  $5,000  annually.  Bonds  in  the 
Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  and  the  railroad  between  Pittsburg 
and  Cleveland  were  bequeathed  to  us  by  the  late  Chief  Justice  Chase, 
amounting  to  $10,000  ;  but  this  is  at  present  not  available. 

Morally  and  intellectually,  I  believe,  we  compare  favorably  with  sim- 
ilar institutions.  We  have  a  church  within  the  university,  by  means  of 
which  the  moral  and  religious  character  of  the  students  are  beneficially 
effected,  so  that  many  who  come  to  us  utterly  careless  of  their  spiritual 
well-being  leave  us  as  earnest  Christians.  In  this  church  we  have  also  a 
well-managed  Sunday-school,  taught  by  the  professors  and  advanced  stu- 


dents. 

In  the  Normal  Department  are — Juniors   4 

M  "  "  "     Seniors   1 

In   the  Classical  Department  are — Sophomores   1 

'*  "  "  "     Juniors   1 

"     Seniors   1 

In  the  Theological  Department  are — Freshmen   6 

"  "  "  "     Sophomores   2 

11  "  "  "     Seniors   2 


in  different  stages  of  preparation  20 


The  Second  Generation  of  Workers.  437 


In  the  Scientific  Department  are — Sophomores   2 

"            "               "            "     Jciniors   ] 

In  the  Training  School  of  different  grades   50 

Different  stages  of  English,  studies   46 

Total   127 


Summary  of  Results  from  1863  to  1876. 

Fully  to  appreciate  the  results  of  our  efforts,  it  is  necessary  to  remember : 
First.  That  the  10th  of  March,  1876,  will  be  just  thirteen  years  since  we 
purchased  the  real  estate  of  Wilberforce  University  at  a  cost  of  $10,000, 
and  the  end  of  July,  1876,  will  be  thirteen  years  since  the  school  opened. 

Second.  That  we  had  not  a  dollar  when  we  made  the  bid  for  the 
property. 

Third.  That  we  opened  the  school  with  but  six  pupils  in  primary 
English  studies,  having  but  one  teacher,  and  that  we  were  burnt  out  about 
two  years  after  we  made  the  purchase  of  the  property.  Our  dormitories, 
recitation  rooms,  library  and  chapel  were  all  consumed,  and  our  school 
almost  broken  up.  We  had  to  begin  anew.  Now  we  have  so  far  com- 
pleted our  new  building  that  we  shall  be  able  to  dedicate  it  this  summer. 
The  burnt  edifice  was  made  of  wood,  erected  on  a  light  brick  foundation — 
it  was  beautiful,  but  a  light,  airy  thing.  Our  present  edifice  is  of  heavy 
brick  on  a  massive  stone  foundation.  The  cost,  when  completed  and  fur- 
nished, will  be  about  $45,000. 

Within  thirteen  years  from  the  time  we  opened  our  primary  English 
school  we  shall  have  graduated  thirteen  young  ladies  and  sixteen  young 
men — total,  twenty-nine.  All  our  graduates  have  been  engaged  in  the  hon- 
orable and  useful  employment  of  the  pulpit  and  the  school-room.  Three 
have  been  elected  to  full  professorships  in  their  Alma  Mater,  and  one  is 
principal  of  Lincoln  Institute,  a  high  and  normal  school  in  the  state  of 
Missouri  for  the  secondary  education  of  colored  youth.  In  addition  to 
these,  scores  of  undergraduates  have  received  partial  education  within  the 
past  twelve  years,  who  are  now  employed,  or  have  been,  as  teachers  and 
preachers  in  the  western  and  southern  states,  but  chiefly  in  the  latter. 

Concerning  the  election  of  trustees  and  faculty.  Inasmuch  as  Wilber- 
force is  under  denominational  auspices,  it  was  deemed  prudent  at  the  time 
of  its  organization  to  have  each  Annual  Conference  represented  by  two 
laymen  and  three  clergymen,  and  therefore,  inasmuch  as  there  are  twenty- 
three  Annual  Conferences,  there  are  one  hundred  and  fifteen  denomina- 
tional trustees.  To  these  add  nine  honorary  trustees  and  the  six  Bishops, 
who  are  ex  officio  trustees,  and  we  have  the  enormous  board  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty ;  but  practically  we  have  not  more  than  twenty-four,  the  largest 
number  ever  present  at  an  annual  meeting.  The  lesson  taught  us  at  the 
end  of  twelve  years  is,  that  there  is  no  need  of  having  more  than  one 
clergyman  and  one  layman  to  represent  an  Annual  Conference,  who  may 
have  alternates.  These,  with  ten  or  twelve  honorary  members,  and  the  ex 
officio,  from  whom  a  quorum  can  be  convened  within  three  hours'  ride  of 
the  University,  would  be  sufficient  for  all  practical  purposes. 


438 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Our  own  experience  and  observation  for  twenty  years  furnish  strong  ob- 
jections also  to  the  annual  election  of  the  faculty.  The  power  and  skill 
requisite  to  the  successful  working  of  a  collegiate  institution  are  attained 
only  by  the  long  experience  and  observations  of  many  years,  and  is  too 
important  and  valuable  to  be  set  aside  for  the  gratification  of  the  ambitious 
and  arrogant  or  the  envious  and  malicious,  as  has  sometimes  been  done. 
Common  sense  dictates  the  abolition  of  such  a  rule,  and  the  adoption  of  a 
better. 

We  will  now  finish  this  historical  sketch  by  remarking  that  the  charter 
of  Wilberforce  prohibits  all  distinction  based  on  race  or  color.  Like  Chris- 
tianity, of  which  it  is  an  offspring,  its  advantages  and  facilities  are  free  to 
all  races.  Though  very  poor,  young  and  weak,  all  the  leading  denomina- 
tions have  been  represented  among  its  teachers  and  its  faculty  as  well  as  its 
trustees.  Methodists,  Baptists,  Presbyterians,  Congregationalists,  Unita- 
rians, Quakers  and  Roman  Catholics  have  met  here  on  common  grounds. 

To  any  thinking  mind  it  may  be  clearly  seen  that  if,  without  endow- 
ment and  with  very  poor  facilities,  so  much  good  has  been  accomplished  as 
these  pages  make  evident,  a  thousand  fold  more  could  be  effected  if  amply 
endowed  and  ably  officered.  To  this  end  its  real,  intelligent  and  consid- 
erate friends  should  wisely  plan  and  diligently  execute. 

Daniel  A.  Payne, 
President  Wilberforce  University,  Greene  Co.,  Ohio. 

February  2t)th,  1870. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 


INSTITUTIONS  O F  LE A R N  ENG. 

Some  Explanations— Young  Women's  Reading  Room — First  Literary  So- 
ciety for  Young  Women — Young  Men's  Reading  Room — Work  Subse- 
quent to  1870— Bishop  Payne's  Successors  in  Office — Changes  in  Instruct- 
ors—  Work  Up  to  1886— List  of  Other  Institutions  of  Learning  Under 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church — Allen  University— Morris  Brown  College — Paul 
<2uinn  College— Later  Work. 

A PARTICULAR  view  of  the  progress  at  Wilberforce  leads  us 
to  note  some  later  items.  One  of  these  is  the  Museum. 
In  our  efforts  to  develop  Wilberforce  University  we  found  it 
uecessary  to  have  more  than  text-books  in  order  that  principles 
taught  in  them  might  receive  ocular  demonstration,  and  inas- 
much as  this  demanded  apparatus,  we  soon  learned  that  while 
grammar  and  arithmetic  can  be  demonstrated  by  the  black-board, 
natural  history  cannot.  The  living  flora  and  the  living  fauna 
should  be  at  our  command,  and  when  these  cannot  be  obtained, 
the  museum,  with  its  preserved  and  stuffed  forms  as  specimens 
must  suffice ;  therefore,  through  the  contributions  of  the  friends 
of  natural  science,  we  have  a  museum  of  which  no  institution  as 
young  and  poverty-stricken  as  ours  need  be  ashamed,  as  every 
one  and  any  one  can  see  who  will  put  themselves  to  the  trouble 
to  visit  Wilberforce.  The  student  can  graduate  now  (1885)  with 
a  better  knowledge  of  God  and  his  works  than  before  the  museum 
was  constructed,  and,  therefore,  the  better  prepared  to  read  and 
interpret  nature.* 

In  the  above  statement  there  occur  two  errors,  which  the  facts 
of  history  require  to  be  corrected  : 

1st.  The  sum  lacking  to  cover  the  whole  cost  of  the  museum 
was  $300.  That  sum  Bishop  Payne  supplemented  from  his  own 
purse. 

2d.  The  university  did  not  agree  to  build  the  cases.  Before 

*On  the  37th  page  of  the  Alumni  Annual,  entitled  "The  Wilberforce 
Alumnal,"  the  following  statement  is  to  be  found:  "Through  Bishop 
Payne's  influence  and  untiring  efforts  the  sum  was  raised  within  about 
$200,  which  he  met  at  a  pecuniary  sacrifice.  The  University  agreed  to 
build  the  cases  (which  were  designed  by  Professor  Ward)  at  a  cost  of  $250." 

(430) 


440 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Bishop  Payne  commenced  to  operate  in  behalf  of  the  contem- 
plated museum  he  laid  the  generous  proposition  of  Professor 
Ward  before  the  trustees  at  their  annual  meeting,  begged  them 
to  aid  him  in  raising  the  $1,400  demanded  by  the  professor,  but 
not  a  man  volunteered  his  services.  Finally,  on  motion  of 
Bishop  Shorter,  he  (Payne)  was  allowed  to  put  the  museum  in 
the  building,  with  the  understanding  that  he  (Payne)  should 
raise  the  funds  to  meet  the  expenses  when  consummated,  and 
then  to  hand  over  the  receipted  bills  in  proof  that  the  museum 
was  paid  for  at  no  cost  to  the  trustees.  Bishop  Shorter  subse- 
quently gave  $30,  and  his  good  wife  $15.  The  facts  of  history 
also  require  the  statement  that  the  cases  cost  about  $250,  which 
sum  was  also  raised  by  the  Bishop.  This  additional  sum  for  the 
cases,  with  eight  per  cent,  interest  upon  the  first  two  notes,  and 
ten  per  cent,  on  the  last  or  third  note,  raised  the  entire  cost  of 
the  museum  to  about  $1,800,  every  cent  of  which  has  been  paid 
through  the  direct  agency  of  Bishop  Payne. 

Another  feature  to  be  noticed  is  the  Art  Room.  This  bears 
the  name  of  J.  F.  W.  Ware,  that  true  friend  of  the  poor 
and  needy,  as  well  as  the  true  lover  of  nature  and  art.  We 
had  opened  this  department  by  employing  a  lady  to  teach 
"free  hand  drawing."  But  we  had  no  art  models  in  wood  or  in 
plaster  of  Paris,  and  only  a  few  ordinary  ones  in  the  form  of  wood 
cuts  and  lithographs.  It  was  this  generous  and  venerable  Uni- 
tarian minister  who  gave  to  Bishop  Payne  the  two  hundred  dol- 
lars to  purchase  the  beautiful  specimens  now  encased  in  the 
"Ware  Art  Room."  It  may  be  interesting  to  tell  how  this  was 
brought  about.  During  the  civil  war,  raging  from  1861  to  1865, 
Mr.  Ware  was  pastor  of  the  Unitarian"  Church  in  the  city  of 
Baltimore,  Md.  As  soon  as  General  Butler  (1861)  declared  the 
slaves  coming  within  his  lines  "  contraband  of  war,"  it  was  found 
necessary  that  the  friends  of  suffering  humanity  should  care  for 
the  helpless  women  and  children  who  could  not  be  employed  in 
military  service.  They  must  be  fed,  housed  and  clothed,  or  left 
to  perish.  It  was  then  that  the  humanitarians  of  the  North  began 
organized  efforts  to  furnish  the  needed  help.  These  humanita- 
rians w7ere  found  as  far  south  as  Baltimore  and  Washington, 
D.  C,  and  among  the  foremost  of  these  was  the  Rev.  John  Foth- 
ergill  Waterhouse  Ware,  who,  by  personal  efforts  among  the 
generous  of  his  own  flock,  took  up  collections  to  help  feed  and 
clothe  the  distressed  and  needy  "contrabands."    Bishop  Payne, 


Tustitutiom  of  Laming. 


Ill 


having  his  official  headquarters  in  Baltimore  at  the  time, 
became  acquainted  with  this  excellent  gentleman,  which  ac- 
quaintance continued  up  to  Mr.  Ware's  death.  A  Tier  the  trans- 
fer of  his  pastoral  relations  from  Baltimore  to  Boston,  he  was 
called  upon  by  the  Bishop  (1877-8)  at  his  summer  residence  at 
Swamstead,  near  Lynn,  Mass.  After  the  usual  courtesies  he  in- 
quired after  the  condition  and  wants  of  Wilberforce  University, 
and  was  told  that  the  Bishop  was  then  endeavoring  to  raise 
funds  to  furnish  the  institution  with  models  for  the  art  room, 
and  also  to  purchase  a  museum  for  illustrating  natural  science, 
whereupon  he  said,  "  I  will  give  you  $100  toward  the  art  room," 
and  suiting  the  deed  to  the  word,  he  took  out  his  cheque  book 
and  tilled  out  an  order  for  $100,  adding  the  remark,  "Whenever 
you  are  in  need  of  $100  for  any  such  purpose  you  can  always 
obtain  it  from  me."  So  the  whole  of  that  gift  was  spent  in  fur- 
nishing a  portion  of  the  models  now  in  the  cases.  The  next 
year  he  was  called  upon  again  at  his  summer  residence,  and  gave 
another  cheque  for  $100.  But  we  have  no  professor  for  this  kind 
of  work,  and  therefore  it  may  be  said  to  have  been  closed 
for  years.  Whatever  use  has  been  made  of  the  art  room  during 
the  last  three  or  four  years  has  been  by  students  whose  work 
does  not  warrant  the  title  of  professor,  for  the  professor  ought 
to  be  learned  in  his  profession  and  skillful  in  his  art.  If  he  has 
not  these  two  qualities  united  in  himself  he  is  not  worthy  of  the 
title,  but  is  a  disgrace  to  it.  The  machinery  is  at  Wilberforce, 
but  there  is  neither  steam  nor  engineer  to  operate  it  (1885). 

Another  feature  for  elevation  is  the  Reading  Rooms.  There 
are  two  of  these,  the  young  women's  and  the  young  men's.  Re- 
specting the  first  the  following  statement  is  transcribed : 

In  February,  1878,  Mrs.  Bierce  took  steps  toward  opening  a  reading 
room  for  the  young  ladies.  She  secured  about  $30  with  which  to  fit  up  the 
room.  The  contributors  to  this  were  Judge  Harmon,  of  Oswego,  N.  Y., 
and  Dr.  N.  T.  True,  of  Bethel,  Me.  The  Ladies'  College  Aid  Society,  of 
Wilberforce,  Mrs  A.  M.  Adams  and  Professor  W.  S.  Scarborough,  of 
Wilberforce,  and  Mrs.  Cooper,  of  Oswego  Normal  School,  sent  packages 
of  papers  and  magazines.  Fifteen  periodicals  were  immediately  placed 
upon  the  tables.  Bishop  Payne  subscribed  for  the  New  York  Inde- 
pendent, The  Methodist,  The  Christian  Advocate,  The  Illustrated  Christian  Weekly, 
and  Golden  Hours  for  the  same ;  Professor  Scarborough,  The  Oberlin 
College  Review,  New  England  Journal  of  Education,  American  Missionary,  and 
N.  Y.  Weekly  Witness ;  Mrs.  Adams,  The  Congregationalist ;  Mrs.  Bierce,  The 
Christian  at  Work,  Ohio  Educational  Monthly,  and  secured  the  donation  of  The 


442 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Woman's  Journal.  The  editors  of  the  Christian  Recorder  and  Louisville 
Bulletin  donated  their  respective  papers.  Other  friends  have  since  donated 
various  subscriptions.  The  University  granting  a  room  and  stove,  the 
room  was  fitted  up,  Bishop  Payne  adding  the  gift  of  two  fine  engravings 
handsomely  framed.  A  fee  of  ten  cents  was  temporarily  charged  to  cover 
expenses  ot  heating  and  lighting,  and  Mrs.  Bierce  managed  the  room  alone 
under  a  few  rules  until  February,  1879,  when  she  formed  a  Young  Woman's 
Reading  Room  Association,  with  thirty  members.  The  initiation  fee 
was  set  at  twenty-five  cents;  annual  dues  twenty  cents.  She  was  chosen 
president.  In  September,  1880,  she  resigned,  wishing  to  initiate  the  young 
women  into  its  management,  while  she  could  advise.  Miss  A.  H.  Jones,  a 
senior,  was  made  president,  which  position  »he  occupied  until  September, 
1881.  The  association  now  found  itself  able  to  purchase  chairs,  and 
to  continue  its  subscriptions  to  two  or  three  periodicals.  The  main  ob- 
ject was  accomplished — to  imbue  the  young  women  with  a  love  for  read- 
ing, and  an  appreciation  for  the  best  kind  of  Uterature.  It  was  no  unusual 
sight  to  find  the  room  crowded  with  readers,  while  the  awakened  thoughts 
and  the  wider  knowledge  of  literature  were  evidenced  in  better  rhetorical 
work  and  more  intelligent  conversation.  From  1881  to  1882  Miss  Ella  J. 
Green  was  president.  No  subscriptions  were  renewed,  no  new  matter 
placed  on  file;  consequently  interest  flagged  among  old  students,  and  none 
was  awakened  in  the  new.  Save  by  a  few  old  students,  the  room  was  neg- 
lected. In  September,  1882,  Mrs.  Bierce  (who  had  resigned  her  position  in 
the  University  the  preceding  year)  was  re-elected  as  Mrs.  W.  8.  Scar- 
borough, and  was  again  made  president  of  the  reading  room  association. 
By  untiring  effort  she  succeeded  in  re-awakening  interest,  adding  new 
members,  and  raised  among  the  members  $15  to  supply  the  room  with  new 
matter.  A  few  friends,  Bishop  Payne  chief  among  them,  still  continued 
some  subscriptions.  At  this  juncture  Dr.  C.  H.  Malcom,  of  the  Bible 
House,  New  York  City,  visited  Wilberforce.  Mrs.  Scarborough  enlisted  his 
sympathies  and  aid,  so  that  up  to  the  present  (1885)  he  has  sent  weekly 
a  package  of  valuable  reading  matter,  including  The  Illustrated  Weekly.  In 
1883  the  association  placed  in  the  room  a  hot  air  register.  In  1884  Mrs. 
Scarborough  again  resigned,  and  Mrs.  A.  J.  Cooper  was  made  president. 
Since  then  nothing  has  been  done  for  the  reading  room.  At  no  time  could 
the  association  be  termed  self-supporting.  The  annual  loss  of  old  mem- 
bers, the  increasing  youth  of  new  students,  and  the  constantly  diminishing 
numbers  generally  made  the  revenue  from  the  small  fees  exceedingly  small 
and  uncertain.  There  being  no  university  aid,  and  no  other  fund  upon 
which  to  draw,  it  requires  constant  interest,  activity  and  influence  upon 
the  part  of  the  manager  to  keep  up  the  reading  room.  Any  relaxation  of 
effort  produces  an  immediate  effect.  Until  a  permanent  fund  may  be  es- 
tablished for  its  aid,  it  must  rely  for  success  chiefly  upon  its  active  manage- 
ment. The  educational  benefit  cannot  be  calculated.  Some  of  our  best 
minds  have,  through  its  influence,  received  their  first  impetus  and  stimu- 
lus to  intellectual  activity,  which  in  turn  has  been  communicated  to  hun- 
dreds.   One  of  the  moral  necessary  appendages  to  any  institution  of  learn- 


I nst it ut ion*  of  Lmrviiitf. 


443 


ing  should  be  so  fostered  and  directed  that  all  may  be  allured  to  take 
advantage  of  its  opportunities  for  education  and  improvement. 

The  following  is  a  sketch  of  the  first  Literary  Society  for  Young 
Women  :  * 

Wilberforce  University  is  the  property  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  and,  as 
such,  whatever  pertains  to  her  should  be  of  interest  to  all  in  that  Church 
especially.  This  is  the  apology  we  would  offer  for  bringing  to  your  notice 
what,  under  any  other  circumstances,  would  be  merely  a  local  affair,  of  in- 
terest to  none  outside  of  the  place  in  which  it  occurred,  and  therefore  not 
worthy  to  burden  the  columns  of  the  Recorder. 

All  progress  in  education,  and  especially  at  the  university,  should  be  of 
interest  to  every  one  in  the  Connection  ;  yet,  so  great  is  the  apathy  as  re- 
gards its  needs,  that  we  often  wonder  if  one-tenth  part  knows  of  its  exist- 
ence. Wilberforce  is  one  of  the  schools  of  our  land  which,  in  their  capac- 
ity of  Alma  Mater  (benign  mother),  do  not,  after  heathen  customs,  seek  to 
rear  only  sons,  but  extend  the  same  care  to  the  daughters.  It  is  in  all  that 
relates  to  the  education,  the  culture  and  the  refinement  of  these  daughters 
that  we  are  especially  interested,  that  they  may  be  polished  after  the 
similitude  of  a  temple  ;  and  the  daughters  of  Wilberforce  are  endeavoring 
to  gain  the  culture  and  polish  which  literary  work  alone  can  bestow. 
There  is  a  legend  that  in  years  past  the  literary  enthusiasm  of  her,  daugh- 
ters rose  to  the  degree  of  a  literary  society.  Be  that  as  it  may,  no  traces 
remain.  The  young  men  long  ago  organized  the  Sodalian,  which  lives, 
has  increased  and  flourishes.  There  they  have  enjoyed  literary  advan- 
tages for  years,  gaining  mental  vigor  and  intellectual  culture,  while  their 
sisters  have  been  standing  still  or  only  making  such  progress  as  they  were 
able,  alone  and  unaided.  As  months  and  years  of  the  writer's  labors 
within  its  walls  passed  by,  she  saw  with  increasing  regret  the  absence  of  a 
similar  circle  for  culture  among  the  young  ladies.  Many  were  the  discour- 
agements. .  The  numbers  in  the  upper  classes  were  too  small  to  warrant 
an  organization,  and  as  some  insisted  that  unless  able  to  have  a  full  com- 
plement of  officers  there  was  no  use  attempting  informal  work  on  trial, 
the  matter  lay  dormant  for  some  months ;  but  minds  had  been  wrought 
upon,  and  many  silent  determinations  made  that  the  desired  day  should 
not  be  far  distant.  Numbers  increased  in  the  higher  classes,  self-confidence 
grew  more  firm,  and  ability  to  do  became  more  apparent.  Then  a  newr 
effort  was  made  to  launch  their  boat.  One  evening  in  February,  1881, 
after  one  of  many  exhortations,  a  company  of  three  promised  to  begin  im- 
mediately to  engage  the  co-operation  of  all  certain  classes  deemed  desir- 
able. Everything  succeeded,  and  Tawawa  Literary  Society  was  established. 
It  started  timorously,  but  determined  on  success.  The  regular  meetings 
were  held  with  closed  doors  throughout  the  year  until  November,  when  it 
grew  bold  enough  to  think  of  a  public  meeting.  Asking  no  man's  assist- 
ance, they  silently  planned  and  executed  all  the  preparations.  Man's 
curiosity  (for  there  is  such  a  thing)  got  the  better  of  him,  and  inquisitive 


•  Written  for  the  Christian  Recorder. 


444 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Sodalians  and  non-Sodalians  plied  interrogations  with  an  eagerness  that 
indicated  a  great  thirst  for  information.  The  young  ladies,  however, 
proved  that  women  can  keep  a  secret,  and  "  Come  and  see  "  was  all  that 
was  vouchsafed  them.  Loftily  indifferent  at  times,  and  incurious  as  they 
desired  to  seem,  it  was  noticed  that  the  Sodalians  held  their  meeting  the 
night  previous,  so  that  they  might  "  Come  and  see."  December  the  1st  a 
goodly  audience  assembled  in  the  college  chapel  to  witness  the  first  public 
meeting  of  the  Tawawa  Literary  Society.  ...  It  was  notable  that, 
while  the  young  ladies,  one  and  all,  deported  themselves  in  a  dignified 
yet  modest  manner,  there  was  an  entire  absence  of  affectation  and  embar- 
rassment, which  usually  accompany  such  occasions.  The  most  severe 
critic  could  find  nothing  to  blame.  The  first  public  meeting  is  interesting 
as  showing  what  our  young  ladies  can  do,  exhibiting  an  intellectual  energy 
and  deportment  pleasing  to  all,  and  it  augurs  much  for  the  future.  They 
have  entered  well  upon  work  absolutely  necessary  to  the  higher  education 
of  women.  This  contact  with  literature  opens  up  another  world,  and 
minds  hitherto  accustomed  to  rove  about,  with  no  well-defined  tastes  or 
aims,  find  therein  every  incentive  to  the  formation  of  a  taste  for  all  that 
pertains  to  the  intellectual  wealth  of  the  ages.  Student  life  and  literary 
life  should  be  inseparable,  as  student  life  is  ever  a  formative  period  in 
varying  degrees,  wherein  foundations  are  laid  for  all  the  future  years.  It 
is  a  great  mistake  for  every  student  in  higher  classes  that  he  or  she  does 
not  enter  a  literary  society.  Mere  text-books  cannot  educate.  We  must 
live  in  the  atmosphere  of  books,  the  thoughts  of  the  noble  and  great,  for 
that  education  which  makes  us  liberal —gives  us  a  broad  culture  and 
refinement.  The  mind  must  be  a  great  store-house  of  knowledge  outside 
of  text-books.  Studying,  reading  and  writing  are  the  three  labors  of  a 
student's  life.  We  have  seen  the  advance  since  the  young  ladies  have 
possessed  a  reading-room,  and  now  that  they  also  possess  a  literary  society, 
it  is  still  more  marked.  The  society  can  wield  a  s^reat  influence  over  the 
younger  minds  of  the  sex,  implanting  aspirations  which  are  high  and 
noble.  Conscious  of  its  weakness,  it  should  not  stand  still  because  of 
present  success,  but  spurred  on  by  its  motto,  it  should  gain  strength  by 
continued  exertions,  letting  the  world  see  that  not  only  was  a  woman  the 
leader  of  the  deed,  but  a  woman  will  carry  on  the  undertaking  success- 
fully. Its  influence  will  also  be  felt  by  the  Sodalians.  As  stated  in  the 
president's  address,  it  is  not  a  rival,  but  a  co-worker  in  the  same  cause. 
Thus  the  young  men  will  feel  its  influence  in  the  spirit  of  a  proper  emu- 
lation, which  will  cause  them  to  look  well  to  their  laurels  in  the  future. 
So  they  may  climb  the  heights  together,  as  man  and  woman,  each  gaining 
from  the  other,  yet  neither  losing. 

"  Self-reverent  each,  and  reverencing  each, 
Sit  side  by  side,  full-summed  in  all  their  powers, 
Dispensing  harvest,  sowing  the  1  To-be  '  " 

The  following  is  taken  from  the  Alumnal,  concerning  the 
Young  Men's  Reading  Room  : 


I nst it ii i iona  <>f  Learning. 


445 


The  Young  Men's  Reading  Room  is  under  the  auspices  of  the  Young 
Men's  Reading  Room  Association.  Tliis  association  was  organized  by 
Professor  W.  8.  Scarborough  during  the  fall  of  1 871).  lie  corresponded 
extensively  with  the  editors  of  the  Leading  journals  and  magazines,  and 
secured  many  papers  gratuitously,  and  many  at  reduced  prices.  In  addi- 
tion to  this,  Professor  Scarborough  contributed  largely  of  his  own  means 
toward  advancing  the  interest  of  the  association,  putting  it  into  an  at- 
tractive condition,  and  making  it  a  literary  center  for  all  who  would  avail 
themselves  of  its  privileges.  He  diffused  among  the  students  of  the  uni- 
versity an  intense  spirit  in  the  interest  of  the  undertaking.  The  venerable 
Bishop  D.  A.  Payne,  D.  I).,  LL.  D.,  ex-president  of  the  university,  w  ho  is 
always  ready  to  assist  in  any  laudable  movement  contributing  to  the  ad- 
vancement of  his  race,  donated  several  periodicals,  including  the  Independ- 
ent, Lutherian  Observer,  Christian  Advocate,  Princeton  Review  and  Christian 
Register.  He  also  presented  the  reading  room  with  a  number  of  miscella- 
neous papers,  which  proved  indispensable  for  reference.  He  secured 
through  the  New  England  Conference  the  gift  of  a  very  serviceable  matting 
for  the  floor  of  the  reading  room,  and  assisted  otherwise  from  his  own 
private  purse  toward  making  the  effort  of  Professor  Scarborough  effectual. 
On  the  files  were  found  very  soon  many  of  the  leading  papers,  magazines 
and  reviews  of  the  country.  Professor  Scarborough  was  its  president  from 
its  origin  till  1881,  when  he  resigned  that  the  young  men  might  be  initi- 
ated into  the  work  of  maintaining  and  perpetuating  a  reading  room. 
Among  the  other  donors  were  Mrs.  Professor  Scarborough,  Dr.  Furness,  of 
Philadelphia,  and  ex-Senator  B.  K.  Bruce.  Occasionally  printed  matter 
would  be  gratuitously  sent  by  editors,  authors  and  publishers,  and  placed 
on  file.  The  young  men  who  mainly  assisted  in  its  support  and  sustained 
it  were  Messrs.  M.  H.  Vaughn  and  T.  D.  Scott  (now  dead),  of  '80;  Messrs. 
E.  A.  Clark,  G.  T.  Lewis,  D.  M.  Ashby,  J.  N.  Dodson,  W.  W.  Jones,  of  '81 ; 
and  Messrs.  J.  R.  Gibson,  F.  H.  Mabsom,  J.  M.  Gilmere,  of  '82,  with  a  few 
others.  After  three  or  four  years  of  activity  the  interest  among  the  stu- 
dents somewhat  abated,  and  there  was  a  lull  until  1885,  when  the  Rev.  T. 
H.  Jackson  attempted  to  infuse  new  life  into  the  movement  by  adding 
new  periodicals  and  soliciting  funds,  but  with  nominal  success.  The  hours 
of  reading  were  .fixed  from  6  to  8  a.  m,,  12  to  2  p.  m.,  4  to  7  p.  m.,  daily 
except  Sunday,  and  on  Saturday  from  4  to  9  p.  m.  The  members  of  the 
faculty  were  ex  officio  members  of  the  reading  room,  and  were  entitled  to 
all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  association.  There  are  now  enrolled 
about  twenty-five  active  members.  At  various  times  there  have  been  con- 
nected with  the  association  over  seventy-five  undergraduates  from  the 
different  departments  in  the  university. 

In  1876,  as  has  been  said,  Bishop  Payne  was  succeeded  by  Rev. 
Benjamin  F.  Lee,  D.  D.,  who  administered  the  affairs  of  the  uni- 
versity from  1876  to  1884.  President  Lee  was  successful  in  training 
many  young  men  and  young  women  for  eminent  usefulness.  In 
1884  the  General  Conference  elected  him  to  the  editorial  chair 


446 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


of  the  Christian  Recorder,  and  then  Rev.  Samuel  T.  Mitchell,  a 
local  preacher,  was  put  in  the  presidency  of  Wilberforce  Univer- 
sity. How  he  will  succeed  in  the  perplexing  office  of  president 
of  this  poverty-stricken  and  debt-burdened  institution  is  yet  to 
be  seen.  Both  of  these  last-named  presidents  are  alumni  of 
Will jerf orce  U  ni  v e rs i t y . 

The  changes  among  the  instructors  of  Wilberforce  University 
have  been  too  many  for  its  steady  and  uninterrupted  progress 
and  prosperity.  Under  the  auspices  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
within  twenty-two  years,  there  have  been  in  the  presidency  of 
Wilberforce  three  changes.  In  the  office  of  lady  principal  and 
matron  there  have  been  nine  changes.  Among  the  instructors  and 
and  professors  there  have  been  eleven  changes.  In  the  normal 
department  there  have  been  seven  changes  in  the  office  of  princi- 
pal. In  all,  thirty-four  persons  have  participated  in  the  instruc- 
tion at  Wilberforce  from  1863  to  1886* 

This  leads  us  to  the  following  reflections: 

(a.)  Where  there  are  such  frequent  changes  there  must  follow 
a  lack  of  stability — a  lack  of  stability  produces  weakness. 

(b.)  Where  there  are  so  many  and  such  frequent  changes,  there 
must  be  frictions,  and  frictions  often  result  in  discord;  but  dis- 

*  These  thirty-four  instructors  are  here  given:  President,  Rt.  Rev.  D. 
A.  Payne,  D.  D.,  of  Gettysburg  Theological  Seminary  ;  President,  Rev. 
Benjamin  F.  Lee,  D.  D.,  of  Wilberforce  University ;  President,  Rev.  8.  T. 
Mitchell,  LL.  D.,  of  Wilberforce  University;  Dr.  John  G.  Mitchell,  A.  M., 
Oberlin  College;  Miss  Esther  T.  Maltby,  A.  B.,  Oberlin  College ;  Mrs.  Fan- 
nie A.  Mitchell,  Oberlin  College;  Rev.  William  Kent,  M.  D.,  England; 
Theodore  E.  Suliot,  A.  M.,  Edinburg,  Scotland;  Miss  Sarah  J.  Woodson, 
Oberlin  College;  Miss  Josephine  Jackson,  B.  S.,  Adrian,  Michigan;  Rev. 
Henry  C.  Fry,  A.  M.,  Oberlin  College  ;  Professor  John  Smith,  Oberlin  Col- 
lege;  Mrs.  Messenger;  Rev.  T.  H.  Jackson,  D.  D.,  Wilberforce  University; 
William  B.  Adams,  A.  M.,  Amherst  College;  Rev.  R.  G.  Mortimer;  Dr. 
Wilson;  Roswell  Howard,  A.  M.,  B.  L;  Hon.  John  Little;  Mrs.  Alice  M. 
Adams,  Holyoke,  Mass.;  Miss  Emma  L.  Parker,  Wesleyan  Female  Semi- 
nary, Oxford,  Ohio ;  Miss  Leonore  Congdon,  Oberlin  College  ;  B.  K.  Samp- 
son, A.  M.,  Oberlin  College;  Miss  McBride,  Oswego  State  Normal  School, 
N.  Y.;  Miss  Ella  J.  Greene,  WTilberforce  University;  J.  P.  Shorter,  A.  B., 
Wilberforce  University;  W.  S.  Scarborough,  A.  M  ,  LL.  D.,  Oberlin  Col- 
lege ;  Mrs.  S.  C.  Bierce  Scarborough,  Classical  Course,  Oswego  State  Normal 
School.  N.  Y  ;  Miss  Gussie  E.  Clark  ;  Miss  H.  M.  Andrews,  Potsdam  Normal 
School,  N.  Y.;  Miss  E.  R.  George;  Miss  Anna  J.  Cooper,  A.  B.,  Oberlin 
College ;  Miss  Anna  H.  Jones,  Oberlin  College  ;  Miss  Mary  E.  Church, 
A.  B.,  Oberlin  College. 


Institutions  of  Learning. 


447 


conl  is  always  damaging  to  the  unity,  peace  and  prosperity 
of  an  institution. 

(<■.)  As  regards  the  students  under  such  changes  and  evils  there 
must  be  much  damage  to  the  finances  of  the  students,  for  new 
teachers  almost  always  introduce  new  methods,  consequently 
new  books.  These  new  hooks  must  displace  old  ones,  however 
good  in  themselves.  Thus  many  an  indigent  student  is  placed 
in  a  serious  dilemma  ;  they  must  leave  their  classes  or  go  in  debt 
to  obtain  these  new  text-books,  or  they  must  use  their  money  for 
needless  new  text-books,  which  money  they  need  for  bread  and 
butter. 

(d.)  These  needless  changes  of  text-books  are  generally  occa- 
sioned by  inexperienced  teachers,  who,  being  just  out  of  college, 
and  destitute  of  professional  training  in  a  first-class  normal  school, 
compel  their  classes  to  use  the  same  books  which  they  were  re- 
quired to  use  in  their  own  Alma  Mater. 

(e.)  These  frequent  changes  in  the  faculty  of  any  institution 
injures  it  by  defeating  the  best  plans  of  usefulness  which  the  fer- 
tile brain  of  an  educator  can  devise,  by  displacing  them  before 
they  have  time  to  execute  their  plans.  Thoughtful  and  educated 
parents  lose  confidence  in  the  institution  where  such  frequent 
changes  occur. 

Every  year  since  1870  graduates,  either  from  the  classical, 
normal  or  theological  departments,  have  gone  forth  from  these 
halls  of  learning.*  Among  these  are  teachers  of  primary  and 
graded  common  schools.  Some  are  principals  of  the  latter. 
Three  have  occupied  the  honorable  and  useful  position  of  presi- 
dents of  colleges,  while  one  has  been  elected  to  the  very  impor- 
tant and  responsible  position  of  editor  of  the  weekly  paper  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church — The  Christian  Recorder.  Beside  the  graduates 
already  named,  hundreds  who  have  not  remained  to  finish  their 
course  have  been  prepared  for  eminent  usefulness. 

During  the  closing  decade  of  1876-1886,  more  institutions  of 
learning  have  sprung  into  existence  than  in  any  preceding  it. 
This  list  comprises  the  Johnson  Divinity  School,  located  at 
Raleigh,  N.  C;  Allen  University,  located  at  Columbia,  S.  C, 
April  8th,  1881 ;  Paul  Quinn  College,  located  at  Waco,  McLennan 
county,  Texas,  April  4th,  1882;  the  Ward  Normal  and  Collegiate 


*  The  number  of  graduates  in  1887  had  reached  ninety-five.  In  1890, 
the  number  had  increased  to  one  hundred  and  eleven, 


448 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Institute,  located  at  Huntsville,  Texas,  September  17th,  1888;* 
the  Scientific,  Normal  and  Divinity  Institute,  located  at  Jackson- 
ville, Fla.,  in  1883;  Turner  College,  located  at  Hernando,  Miss., 
in  the  year  1881 ;  Western  University,  located  at  Quindaro,  Kan- 
sas; Morris  Brown  University,  located  at  Atlanta,  Ga.  As  for 
Garfield  University,  it  has  not  so  much  as  a  paper  existence. 
The  enterprise  has  completely  failed.  About  $2,500  was  also 
thrown  away  in  fruitless  endeavors  to  establish  this  school.  The 
cause  of  its  failure  may  be  stated  in  general  terms — its  projectors 
began  before  they  were  ready,  and  involved  themselves  in  debts 
amounting  to  the  above-mentioned  sum.  The  founding  of  a 
college  requires  a  great  deal  of  forethought  and  preparation. 
This  is  true  of  those  who  can  command  a  deep,  long  and  wide 
purse.  Especially  is  this  true  of  a  people,  or  the  leaders  of  a 
people,  who  are  poverty-stricken  and  unacquainted  with  enter- 
prises that  require  large  sums  of  money  to  secure  success.  Col- 
leges are  expensive  things — expensive  from  the  beginning,  ex- 
pensive till  their  full  development  has  been  reached,  and  expensive 
to  maintain  after  this  has  been  accomplished.  Therefore,  we 
should  never  be  in  haste  to  "  adopt  a  resolution"  to  found  a  col- 
lege. Resolutions  cost  nothing  but  thought,  and  in  almost  all 
cases  the  thought  of  a  single  head.  But  the  establishment  of  an 
institution  of  learning  worthy  of  the  name  of  a  college  demands 
more  than  paper  resolutions,  which  cost  nothing  but  a  sheet  of 
paper,  a  pen,  and  a  little  ink.  Allen  University  was  founded  by 
Bishop  W.  F.  Dickerson  in  1881-82.  The  building  is  an  old  fash- 
ioned frame  house,  once  the  mansion  of  a  slaveholding  aristocrat 
and  democrat,  but  now  consecrated  to  the  mental  training  of 
negroes.  Its  first  class  graduated  in  1884  from  the  law  department, 
and  embraced  four  promising  young  men. 

In  answer  to  a  list  of  questions  sent  to  Bishop  J.  M.  Brown  in 
188-5,  the  following  facts  are  stated  by  him  concerning  the  estab- 
lishment of  Paul  Quinn  College  and  other  educational  work 
within  his  work.    By  them  some  popular  beliefs  may  be  corrected  : 

I  suggested  the  school  which  resulted  in  its  establishment,  in  the  fall  of 
the  year  1872,  at  the  Conference  held  in  Houston,  Texas.    The  circum- 

The  Ward  Normal  and  Divinity  Institute  has  also  no  existence  at  the 
present;  and  thus  the  $2,350.75  spent  on  the  property,  reported  at  the 
General  Conference  of  1884,  have  been  thrown  away.  It  would  have  been 
more  profitably  spent  upon  Paul  Quinn  College  in  the  same  state,  which 
school  is  still  in  debt. 


Institutions  of  Learning. 


449 


stances  were  the  great  dearth  of  intelligence  amongst  the  clergy  of  the 
Texas  Conference  and  their  absolute  inability  to  make  the  work  of  the 
Church  a  success.  I  believe  the  brethren  were  good  and  sincere  workers, 
but  needed  help  educationally,  hence  the  suggestion.  We  organized  the 
school,  appointed  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Gillian!  principal,  and  located  the 
school  at  Austin,  Texas,  where  it  remained  for  more  than  a  year;  but 
imprudence  and  lack  of  judgment  on  his  part  caused  me  to  remove  him. 
The  Conference  did  not  do  more  than  collect  money  and  purchase  property 
at  Waco,  where  Quinn  College  is  now  located." 

As  to  the  question  concerning  the  condition  in  which  he  left 
the  educational  work  when  his  term  of  office  expired,  he  makes 
answer : 

1.  The  property  at  Waco  was  secured.  2.  The  school  was  established. 
3.  Mrs.  Jones  opened  the  school  where  it  is  now.  4.  I  left  considerable 
money  in  the  hands  of  the  treasurer,  and  secured  $200  by  a  vote  of  "the 
financial  board,"  which  was  forwarded  to  him.  Bishop  Ward  kept  the 
school  in  motion,  but  Bishop  Cain  gave  it  the  name  of  "  William  Paul 
Quinn  College,"  and  commenced  the  present  building,  I  think — possibly  it 
was  Bishop  Ward.  The  school  in  South  Carolina  was  suggested  and  organ- 
ized by  appointing  Rev.  Joseph  T.  Thompson,  Professor  W.  S.  Scar- 
borough, LL.  D.,  and  Professor  Joseph  Morris,  A.  M.,  at  different  periods  to 
the  school.  We  also  purchased  the  property  at  Cokesbury,  S.  C,  where 
Professors  Scarborough  and  Morris  taught.  This  seminary  which  I  organ- 
ized, Bishop  Campbell  did  good  in  helping  forward  The  theological 
department  of  the  school  at  Raleigh,  N.  C,  was  organized.  Miss  Dowes 
taught  in  it,  and  the  intelligent  of  our  brethren  helped  her  by  lectures. 
The  property  at  Cokesbury  was  sold  under  Bishop  Dickerson's  administra- 
tion, and  the  proceeds  were  devoted  to  aid  in  the  purchase  of  Allen  Uni- 
versity, Columbia,  S.  C. 

While  in  charge  of  the  Louisiana  Conference,  I  established  a  school  at 
Baton  Rouge,  La.  Rev.  Morris  Johnson  was  principal,  and  Mrs.  Sarah 
Waters  was  his  assistant.    The  school  did  well,  but  poverty  compelled  us 

to  close  it  I  might  add,  there  was  a  most  excellent  educational 

work  commenced  at  Live  Oak,  Florida,  but  somebody  was  at  fault  for  that 
failure.    Our  system  of  changing  a  Bishop  every  four  years  had  much  to  do 

with  the  failure  I  am  told  that  you  have  a  most  excellent 

seminary  at  Jacksonville." 

So  wre  see  that  one  man  lays  the  foundation,  another  erects  the 
edifice  upon  that  foundation,  a  third  completes  the  building. 
Bishop  Browm  has  done  something  more  than  make  eloquent 
speeches  in  behalf  of  education — more  than  spinning  out  a  beau- 
tiful theory  on  education.  He  has  labored  in  the  school-room, 
and,  as  his  letters  show,  he  has  planned  in  its  behalf,  and  so 
29 


450 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


planned  that  others  could  complete  what  he  had  neither  time 
nor  opportunity  to  do. 

The  following  communication  from  President  Burgan  shows 
the  condition  of  Quinn  College  in  1885: 

William  Paul  Quinn  College  is  situated  at  Waco,  Texas,  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Brazos  River,  about  one  mile  from  the  busiest  portion  of  the  city. 
It  stands  in  a  lot  of  twenty  acres  of  feitile  soil,  which  has  a  sufficient  ele- 
vation above  the  greater  part  of  the  city  to  render  it  dry  and  healthy. 
Fresh  water  is  abundant,  and  the  neighbors  quiet  and  well  disposed. 
Waco  is  one  of  the  leading  railroad  centers  of  the  state,  and  is  called  the 
Athens  of  Texas.  The  people  enjoy  the  benefits  of  a  good  public  school 
system.  Within  her  borders  are  three  denominational  institutions  and  one 
business  college.  She  has  all  the  modern  facilities  of  communication,  and 
her  business  men  are  thrifty  and  polite.  The  college  was  projected  in  1784 
by  the  Texas  A.  M.  E.  Conference  in  Austin,  at  which  time  Rt.  Rev.  J.  M. 
Brown,  presiding  Bishop,  urged  with  fervent  spirit  that  our  Church  should 
establish  an  institution  of  higher  education  in  the  state  of  Texas.  When  the 
matter  was  made  known  to  the  public  it  was  strongly  endorsed  by  white 
and  colored.  Several  of  the  leading  citizens  desired  the  college  located  within 
their  corporate  limits,  and  offered  inducements  to  that  end,  but  Waco  was 
the  favored  spot.  It  seemed  mere  mockery  for  a  people  as  poor  as  our 
people  were  to  take  hold  of  such  an  enterprise,  but  being  ambitious,  zeal- 
ous, they  pushed  forward  amid  the  scoffs  of  many,  simply  trusting  in  God. 
Elders  H.  Wilhite  and  Carson  canvassed  the  state,  and  with  small  sums, 
gathered  here  and  there  by  them  and  a  few  faithful  men  and  women, 
some  of  whom  were  Baptists,  the  first  lot  was  purchased  on  the  wef-t  side 
of  the  river.  Here  Bishop  Cain  found  the  enterprise,  and  with  a  determi- 
nation to  succeed,  he  sold  this  lot,  and  bought  the  grounds  where  the  college 
now  stands.  In  1881  steps  were  taken  to  erect  the  present  brick  building, 
Elder  Carson  and  the  Bishop  being  the  prime  actors.  At  this  stage  of  the 
work  there  was  a  general  co-operation  of  the  leaders  in  our  Church  through- 
out the  state  and  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Waco. 

On  the  oth  day  of  April,  1882,  the  school  opened  with  Bishop  Cain, 
D.  D.,  president ;  H.  T.  Kealing,  B.  S.,  principal;  Mrs.  N.  T.  Jones,  lady 
principal,  and  Mrs.  Demby,  matron.  The  same  faculty,  with  the  change 
of  Mrs.  Mary  James  as  matron,  opened  school  in  September,  1882,  and 
closed  June,  1883,  with  a  large  attendance,  and  with  the  consciousness  of 
having  done  much  good.  The  faculty  selected  to  open  the  school  in  the 
fall  of  1883  comprised  six  persons,  with  Bishop  Cain  president.  As  mem- 
bers of  this  faculty,  I.  M.  Burgan,  B.  D.,  principal-elect,  and  Miss  E. 
A.  Gaines,  lady  principal-elect,  left  their  northern  homes  with  hearts 
elated  to  think  that  such  a  field  of  labor  had  opened  to  them  so  soon  after 
having  finished  school  in  June.  They  arrived  in  Waco  on  the  27th  of  Sep- 
tember, just  in  time  to  see  the  trustees,  who  had  already  decided  not  to 
open  school  that  year.  The  words  of  welcome  from  the  trustees  were  that 
no  member  of  the  new  faculty  was  expected,  and  that  they  thought  it  best 


Institutions  of  Learning. 


451 


not  to  open  school.  This,  to  some  extent,  quenched  the  fire  which  hith- 
erto had  been  burning  upon  the  altar  of  ambition,  and  their  zeal  for  the 
work  was  somewhat  abated.  Finally,  terms  were  agreed  to,  and  they 
opened  school  at  the  appointed  time  with  only  eight  students.  With  the 
exception  of  a  few  flying  visits  by  Bishop  Cain,  these  two  young  teachers 
labored  on  amongst  strangers  with  no  word  of  counsel,  no  act  of  co-opera- 
tion, and  with  no  sign  of  sympathy  until  the  latter  part  of  March,  1884,  at 
which  time  they  were  joined  by  Miss  J.  E.  Adams  as  matron.  By  hard 
work,  and  at  the  sacrifice  of  almost  everything  dear  to  human  life,  they 
closed  a  successful  year's  work  in  June  with  bright  prospf  cts  for  the  future. 

On  the  24th  of  July,  1884,  I.  M.  Burgan  was  elected  president,  and  man- 
aged to  erect  a  two-story  frame  building  for  the  accommodation  of  young 
men,  and  to  remodel  the  dining-room.  This  makes  at  the  time  of  this 
writing  (April,  188o),  three  buildings  and  an  office  on  the  premises.  This 
school  year  opened  October,  1884,  with  a  fair  attendance,  which  has  been 
steadily  increasing  until  it  has  now  reached  seventy.  Some  of  these  stu- 
dents are  quite  promising*.  The  school  is  pretty  well  graded,  and  is  taught 
by  three  teachers,  all  of  whom  are  graduates  from  northern  colleges.  The 
grounds  are  cultivated  by  male  students,  while  the  dining-room  work  and 
much  of  the  kitchen  work  is  done  by  the  female  students.  This  gives 
them  ample  exercise  to  render  themselves  healthy  and  active.  The  school- 
work  embraces  the  following  departments,  in  which  the  branches  usually 
found  in  other  colleges  are  taught:  Primary,  normal,  preparatory,  scientific, 
classical  and  theological. 

This,  then,  is"  the  work  in  education,  accomplished  under  the 
hand  of  God,  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 
It  would  seem  to  the  thoughtful  mind  that  with  these  founda- 
tions, and  under  wise  guidance,  the  present  workers  and  those  to 
come  may  huild  grandly  for  the  good  of  the  race  and  the  glory 
of  his  name. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 


MUSIC  AND  THE  FINE  ARTS. 

Origin  and  Progress  of  Music — Origin  of  Choral  Singing — Composition  of 
the  Choir  of  "Old  Bethel"  Church,  Philadelphia— The  Choir  in  the 
Mother  Church,  Baltimore — Introduction  of  the  Organ— Organization  of 
the  Choir  in  Washington,  D.  C. — The  Boston  Choir  and  Organ — Choir 
and  Organ  in  Bethel,  New  York — Advance  Movement  in  Sacred  Music — 
New  Bethel  in  Philadelphia. 

IN  the  mother  church,  Bethel,  in  Philadelphia,  the  best  vocal- 
ists in  1840,  who  were  members  of  the  church,  were  Ely- 
mus  Johnson,  Henry  Gor,  Lewis  Seymour,  and  several  women. 
Among  the  latter  was  Mrs.  Jane  Johnson,  the  amiable  wife  of 
Brother  Elvmus  Johnson.  These,  with  others,  soon  after  the 
dedication  of  New  Bethel,  on  the  23d  of  December,  1841,  organ- 
ized a  choir  and,  with  the  consent  of  such  an  intelligent  man  as 
Rev.  Joseph  Cox  and  the  permission  of  Bishop  Morris  Brown, 
introduced  it  into  the  gallery  of  the  new  building — the  gallery 
opposite  the  pulpit.  It  was  occasioned  by  the  fact  that  on  the 
day  just  mentioned,  when  the  dedication  of  New  Bethel  took 
place,  the  "old  people,"  who  were  opposed  to  singing  by  note, 
appointed  Brother  El  vmus  Johnson  to  lead  the  congregational 
singing,  but,  being  rather  weak  in  the  chest,  and  consequently  of 
rather  feeble  voice,  he  failed  to  give  satisfaction  to  the  audience 
because  others  whose  voices  were  as  melodious  as  his  could  not 
aid  him.  They  would  not  join  the  congregational  singing  be- 
cause they  were  not  allowed  to  sing  by  note.  In  the  journal  of 
Elder  Joseph  Cox  is  found  the  following  entry,  dated  Thursday, 
December  23d,  1841 : 

The  singing  to-day  was  not  good,  there  being  an  opposition  because  the 
old  people  are  opposed  to  note  singing.  Elvmus  Johnson,  the  person  ap- 
pointed by  them,  is  weakly  and  the  others  would  not  help  him.  So  we  had 
dull  music  to-day. 

In  1842,  June  9th,  Brother  Cox  made  the  following  entry: 

The  musical  department  of'the  Bible  Class  Association  of  Bethel  Church 
takes  this  opportunity  of  informing  this  congregation  that  they  will  give 
their  first  vocal  soiree  of  choruses  from  eminent  authors  on  next  Thursday 

(  452  j 


Music  <i))(l  th<   Fine  Arts. 


463 


evening,  the  23d  inst.,  in  the  above-named  church,  to  commence  at  eight 
o'clock,  at  which  time  and  place  you  are  religiously  invited.  The  object  is 
to  further  the  cause  of  the  Norristown  Church,  Pa.  Admittance,  12A  cents 
each. 

Rev.  Cox  hesitated  to  read  this  notice  until  he  had  made  some 
inquiry  about  it  among  the  trustees  and  found  that  it  had  been 
discussed  by  them  and  a  majority  were  in  favor,  "but  J.  Wilson 
and  ( i .  Miller  rather  opposed."  On  further  inquiry  he  remembered 
that  the  coining  Thursday  night  had  been  previously  set  apart 
to  take  up  subscriptions  for  the  benefit  of  Bethel,  and  after  con- 
sulting the  leading  members  of  the  choir  the  concert,  or  vocal 
soiree,  as  it  was  named,  was  postponed.  Subsequently  this  same 
"  vocal  soiree"  was  held  in  Bethel  church,  and  many  of  the 
"old  people," particularly  some  aged  sisters  who  professed  sancti- 
fieation,  were  so  greatly  offended  that,  saying,  "  the  devil  has  got 
into  the  church,"  they  left  Bethel  and  never  returned  to  her 
communion.  The  excitement  among  the  members  of  Bethel  was 
so  deej)  and  wide-spread  that  D.  A.  Payne  (later  Bishop  Payne) 
was  called  upon  and  requested  to  preach  a  sermon  in  defense  of 
sacred  music.  He  came  across  a  little  book  written  by  Mr. 
Wesley  on  the  same  subject,  which  he  found  very  inspiring  and 
useful. 

The  choir  of  Old  Bethel*  in  Philadelphia  was  made  up  of  some 
of  the  most  intelligent  and  devoted  Christians  in  the  church. 
The  effect  of  their  singing  in  the  public  sanctuary  on  the  Lord's 
day  was  often  most  thrilling  and  as  unctious  as  some  of  the  most 
spiritual  sermons  ever  heard  in  Old  Bethel.  In  those  days  it  was 
customary  for  this  musical  department  of  the  Bible  Class  Associ- 
ation of  Bethel  Church  to  serenade  particular  persons  at  the 
dawn  of  Christmas.  No  one  but  those  who  have  had  their  slum- 
bers broken  by  these  sacred  serenades  can  realize  their  divine 

*On  the  third  Sunday  of  June,  1889,  the  farewell  services  of  the  church 
were  held  in  this  "  Old  Bethel,"  which  had  stood  for  nearly  one  half  a  cen- 
tury, and  preparations  were  made  for  the  erection  of  the  New  Bethel. 
This  edifice  was  dedicated  October  26,  1890,  the  addresses  being  made  by 
the  senior  Bishop,  D.  A.  Payne,  who,  in  his  eightieth  year,  and  still  in  ac- 
tive service,  though  very  feeble,  traveled  from  his  home  in  Ohio  to  conduct 
the  ceremony.  It  was  at  the  dedication  of  this  New  Bethel  that  four  of 
the  singers  who  sang  in  the  choir  the  day  Old  Bethel  was  dedicated  again 
lifted  up  their  voices  in  the  new  structure — Mr.  Hans  Shadd,  Mrs.  Elizabeth 
Armstrong,  Mr.  Henry  Jones,  and  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Clark.  So  the  aged  ones 
link  the  past  with  the  present  in  an  ever  continuous  chain. 


454 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sweetness  and  power.*  The  blameless  lives  of  the  men  and 
women  who  composed  this  choir,  and  the  spiritual  character  of 
their  singing,  soon  reconciled  a  majority  of  the  church  members 
and  the  congregation  to  their  existence,  and  thus  prepared  the 
way  for  the  introduction  of  the  organ. 

It  was  at  the  dedication  of  1841  that  the  following  Sacred  Ode 
was  composed  by  Rev.  D.  A.  Payne: 

A  SACRED  ODE. 

Composed  in  the  Pulpit  of  Bethel  Church  Directly  After  Its  Conse- 
cration, and  Dedicated  to  Its  Bishops,  Ministers  and  Members. 

Descend  !  descend!  Thou  gracious  God  of  heav'n  ! 

And  with  thy  glory  fill  this  beauteous  fane ; 
Descend  !  and  let  thy  mercy  here  be  giv'n  ; 

Descend  !  and  let  thy  statutes  here  obtain. 
O,  here,  the  mantle  of  thy  love  outspread, 
And  let  thy  richest  blessings  here  be  shed. 

Here  may  the  light  of  holy  truth  dispel 

The  moral  darkness  of  the  human  mind ; 
Defeat  the  combined  pow'rs  of  earth  and  hell, 

And  achieve  all  the  heart  of  Christ  design'd. 
Here  let  the  dews  of  Christian  love  distill, 
And  peace  divine  each  faithful  bosom  fill. 

Speak  here,  Great  Saviour !  and  the  blind  will  see, 
The  deaf  will  hear,  the  dumb  will  sing  thy  praise  ; 

Lepers  be  cleansed,  the  maim'd  will  worship  thee, 
And  from  their  graves  the  sleeping  dead  be  raised ; 

The  halt  will  leap  and  tread  the  heavenly  way, 

While  flying  devils  shall  thy  word  obey. 

Lord !  when  thy  people  in  this  house  shall  raise 

Their  voice  melodious  to  extol  thv  pow'r ; 
Be  they  the  morning  or  the  evening  lays, 

Or  in  a  mournful  or  a  joyous  hour — 
O,  let  their  songs,  sweet  as  the  voice  of  love, 
Borne  up  by  angels,  rise  to  thee  above. 

And  when  thy  children  in  this  house  shall  pray, 
And  lift  to  heaven  their  confidential  eyes  ; 

O,  hear,  benignant,  every  word  they  say, 
And  hasten  hither  from  the  op'ning  skies 

;"  One  Christmas  morning  the  writer  was  wakened  out  of  a  deep  sleep  by 
this  musical  band,  and  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  was  listening  to  the  angelic 
choir  that  saluted  the  ears  of  the  wondering  shepherds  on  the  Saviour's 
natal  morning. 


Music  a  ad  the  Pine  Arts. 


455 


T<>  press  this  altar  with  thy  viewless  feet, 

And  'round  this  throne  thy  willing  people  meet. 

Here  let  the  thunders  of  thy  law  resound, 
Its  lightnings  Hash  an  omnipresent  pain 

In  tyrants'  hearts,  till  every  slave  unbound 

Shall  shout  for  joy  and  crush  the  oppressors'  chain. 

O,  here  let  holy  freedom  speak  aloud, 

And  freemen  plead  the  cause  of  freedom's  God. 

Redeemer!  may  the  cause  of  missions  here 

Receive  a  high,  a  most  exalted  place, 
And  many  a  herald  go  from  hence  to  bear 

The  joyful  message  of  redeeming  grace  ; 
Bid  home-born  heathens  and  the  pagans  far 
Receive  the  light  of  Zion's  blazing  star! 

Here  may  the  blood-stained  banner  of  the  Cross 

In  pristine  beauty  now  begin  to  wave, 
To  guide  the  bark  on  sin's  dark  billows  toss'd, 

And  show  a  ruin'd  wrorld  that  God  can  save. 
Here  may  the  heralds  of  salvation  be 
A  spotless  priesthood,  and  from  error  free ! 

Come,  quickly  come  !  Thou  God  of  Israel,  here  ! 

Eternal  Spirit !  let  thy  peace  abound  ! 
Make  Bethel  now  a  crown  of  honor  wear, 

And,  like  the  sun,  shed  light  and  heat  around  ! 
Then  shall  the  glory  of  this  latter  place 
Shine  forth,  resplendent,  with  superior  grace  ! 

Adoring  angels,  from  the  clouds  descend! 

And  promenade  this  consecrated  aisle. 
Bright  cherubim  !  your  unheard  voices  blend 

To  inspire  our  worship  with  celestial  style. 
And  thou,  blest  Saviour  !  Thee  our  hearts  implore  ; 
Come,  sway  thy  sceptre  here,  for  evermore! 

Bethel !  aw  ake  !  and  educate  thy  sons 

Who  bear  the  message  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts ; 

Let  science  elevate  thy  sacred  ones, 
,And  God  inspire  them  with  the  Holy  Ghost. 

A  flood  of  light  this  pulpit  then  shall  pour, 

And  "baptized  infidels  "  thy  God  adore. 

Here  may  repenting  sinners  be  forgiv'n 

Through  faith  in  Jesus  and  his  cleansing  blood ; 

Then  have  their  names  recorded  in  high  heav'n 
On  tablets  lasting  as  the  throne  of  God  ! 

O,  Bethel !  then  how  dreadful  wilt  thou  be  ! 

The  gate  of  heav'n — a  house  of  God  for  thee  ! 


456 


Hi  story  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


According  to  the  best  information  obtainable  no  one  now  liv- 
ing can  say  whether  or  not  the  introduction  of  the  choir  into 
Bethel,  Baltimore,  was  opposed  by  any  one.  On  the  writer's 
first  visit  to  Baltimore,  in  April,  1843,  the  choir  was  in  popular 
favor.  Its  leader  was  a  man  by  the  name  of  James  High.  The 
majority  of  all  of  its  members  were  spiritual  minded,  and  there- 
fore conducted  the  singing  with  great  fervor  and  effect.  They 
sang  "  with  the  spirit  and  the  understanding"  also. 

Instrumental  music  was  first  introduced  into  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  at  Baltimore  in  Bethel  by  its  pastor,  in  1849  or  18-50. 
The  present  grand,  temple-like  edifice  on  Saratoga  street,  near 
Gay.  was  constructed  in  1848.  When  completed  $5,000  had 
been  paid.  The  balance  due  on  it  was  about  $10,000,  which  was 
divided  into  eight  notes  of  equal  amount.  One  of  these  had 
been  paid,  and  the  second  was  nearly  matured,  and  the  payment 
of  it  was  rather  difficult  by  collections.  The  pastor,-  therefore, 
resolved  to  get  up  a  concert  of  sacred  music,  accompanied  by  in- 
struments. He  went  to  Washington,  D.  C,  and  secured  the 
services  of  Mr.  James  Fleet,  the  ablest  colored  musician  then  in 
the  District  of  Columbia.  To  consummate  his  plans  Mr.  Fleet 
selected  Miss  Eliza  Euston,  at  that  time  the  finest  soprano  in 
the  District;  Miss  Fannie  Fisher,  the  best  alto;  Mr.  James 
Wormley,  the  best  if  not  the  only  performer  on  the  bass  viol; 
and  Mrs.  Hermion  Fleet,  a  pianist,  the  wife  of  Mr.  Fleet,  who 
played  on  the  flute  and  the  guitar,  as  well  as  the  piano,  with 
-great  skill.  All  the  songs,  the  lyrics,  were  composed  by  the 
pastor.  He  did  this  portion  of  the  work  in  order  that  nothing 
profane  should  desecrate  the  Lord's  house.  They  were  set  to 
music  by  Dr.  Fleet.  At  the  appointed  time  this  quartette,  led 
by  Dr.  Fleet,  appeared  in  Baltimore,  and  held  the  first  concert 
of  sacred  instrumental  music  in  the  A.  M.  F.  Church.  Bethel 
was  crowded  with  an  audience  eager  to  listen  for  the  first  time 
to  sacred  songs  accompanied  by  the  piano,  the  flute,  the  guitar 
and  the  bass  viol.  The  audience  was  delighted, '  enraptured, 
and  thanked  the  Lord  that  they  were  permitted  to  see  and  hear 
instruments  always  devoted  heretofore  to  secular  purposes  now 
consecrated  to  God's  service.  The  financial  results  of  this  first 
attempt  were  shown  in  the  $300  net  for  the  church.  The  second 
grand  concert,  of  a  similar  nature,  was  prepared  and  conducted 
by  Mr.  William  Appo,  the  gifted  father  of  the  present  Mrs.  John 
F.  Cook,  of  W  ashington,  D.  C.    This  concert  was  accompanied 


Music  and  the  Fme  Arts. 


457 


by  seven  violins,  all  handled  by  master  musicians.  The  solos 
were  Bung  by  Miss  Greenfield,  subsequently  known  as  "the  Black 
Swan."  Until  this  concert  of  stringed  instruments  not  one  of  as 
knew  that  the  violin  could  be  used  with  greal  effect  in  the  serv- 
ice of  the  Lord.  It  gave  as  some  idea,  more  or  less  correct,  of 
what  was  the  inspiration  of  the  Royal  Musician  when  lie  wrote: 

Praise  ye  the  Lord. 

Praise  God  in  li is  sanctuary  : 

Praise  him  in  the  firmament  of  his  power, 

Praise  him  for  his  mighty  acts, 

Praise  him  for  his  excellent  greatness, 

Praise  him  with  the  sound  of  the  trumpet, 

Praise  him  with  the  psaltery  and  harp, 

Praise  him  with  the  timbrel  and  pipe, 

Praise  him  witli  stringed  instruments  and  organs, 

Praise  him  upon  the  loud  cymbals, 

Praise  him  upon  the  high-sounding  cymbals. 

The  introduction  of  the  organ  into  Bethel,  Baltimore,  was 
during  the  pastorate  of  Rev.  Savage  L.  Hammonds,  in  the  year 
1864.  The  last  and  present  organ  was  put  in  under  the  admin- 
istration of  Rev.  George  Wat  kins,  I).  D.,  in  the  year  1872.  It 
cost  $2,500,  and  was  built  by  Pomplitz,  of  Baltimore,  Md. 

The  organization  of  the  choir  in  Washington,  D.  C,  was  under 
the  pastorate  of  Rev.  Charles  Sawyer,  1843.  It  seems  that  this 
occurred  without  opposition,  though  later  considerable  opposi- 
tion was  made  by  one  of  the  pastors  to  its  continuance,  but  it 
was  unavailing.  It  was  generally  true  that  the  opposition  came' 
from  those  who  cared  only  for  those  "corn-field  ditties"  which 
could  produce  the  wildest  excitement  among  the  thoughtless 
masses.  Such  persons  are  usually  so  because  they  are  non-pro- 
gressive,  and,  being  illiterate,  are  consequently  very  narrow  in 
views  of  men  and  things.  A  strong  religious  feeling,  coupled 
with  a  narrow  range  of  knowledge,  often  makes  one  a  bigot. 
The  organ  was  introduced  September,  1864,  and  was  paid  for  by 
the  avails  of  concerts  and  other  entertainments  given  by  the 
choir,  of  which  Mr.  John  A.  Simms  was  the  leader. 

The  choir  of  the  Boston  church  was  organized  by  Mr.  Lewis 
Major,  who  was  not  a  member  of  the  church,  but  the  husband  of 
Sister  Elizabeth  Major,  an  intelligent,  pious  and  praiseworthy 
leader  in  the  Sunday-school  work.  Mr.  Major  was  the  first  chor- 
ister. He  met  with  no  opposition,  because  the  membership  of 
our  Church  in  the  enlightened  city  of  Boston  was  so  intelligent 


458 


Hist  (fry  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


that  they  regarded  the  introduction  of  the  choir  and  the  organ 
as  an  advanced  step  in  their  religious  public  worship.  This  ad- 
vanced movement  was  made  in  the  autumn  of  1867,  under  the 
pastorate  of  Rev.  Ebenezer  Williams.  At  the  time  of  this  event 
the  congregation  was  worshipping  in  a  little  building  much  like 
a  shanty,  at  No.  86  Anderson  street. 

The  choir  was  introduced  into  our  church  in  the  city  of  New 
York  as  early  as  1830,  under  the  pastorate  of  Rev.  Samuel  Todd, 
to  which  no  opposition  was  made.  At  that  time  William  Moore 
and  Jeremiah  Thomas  were  leading  members  of  it,  and  both 
became  subsequently  itinerant  preachers.  The  organ  was  intro- 
duced in  1801,  by  Rev.  Jonathan  Gibbs.  The  opposition  was 
strong,  and  was  led  by  a  large  number  of  the  membership ;  but 
no  split  ensued.  At  present  (1886)  there  is  no  congregation 
among  us  where  the  choir  and  the  organ  are  more  highly  appre- 
ciated than  in  Bethel  Church,  in  the  city  of  New  York.  To 
listen  to  its  performances  at  almost  all  times  is  to  be  filled  with 
delight. 

Such  was  the  genesis  of  vocal  and  instrumental  music  in  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church.  Opposition  to  this  part  of  our  public  worship 
had  been  made  at  different  times  in  different  places  since  1841-42, 
but  nearly  always  it  had  been  overcome  without  rupture,  as  in  the 
case  of  Bethel,  in  Philadelphia,  Pa.  It  is  now  an  established 
fact  that  the  choir  and  the  organ,  where  the  congregation  can 
afford  it,  and  the  melodeon  even,  where  poverty  prevents  the 
^purchase  of  the  other,  is  now  part  of  Church  worship  in  the  Con- 
nection and  throughout  its  boundaries.  But  there  has  been  an 
advance  movement  in  sacred  music.  In  1882,  at  the  suggestion 
of  Bishop  Turner,  the  thirtieth  year  of  Bishop  Payne's  episcopate 
was  celebrated  in  Sullivan  Street  A.  M.  E.  Church,  in  the  city 
of  New  York,  where  Rev.  Thomas  McCants  Stewart  was  then 
pastor.  At  the  close  of  the  services  a  proposition  to  organize  a 
Connectional  Sunday-School  Union  was  offered  by  Rev.  C.  S. 
Smith,  of  the  Illinois  Conference.  This  proposition  was  made 
to  the  Bishops'  Council,  then  sitting  in  the  pastor's  study.  But, 
inasmuch  as  the  council  was  on  the  eve  of  adjournment,  it  had 
not  the  time  needed  for  its  consideration;  and,  therefore,  it  was 
ordered  that  Elder  Smith  should  meet  the  Bishops  at  their  an- 
nual meeting,  to  be  held  at  Cape  May,  on  the  9th  of  August,  1882. 
Accordingly  Elder  Smith  appeared  there  and  presented  a  written 
constitution    carefully   prepared,   which   was   considered  and 


Music  and  the  1$ne  Arts. 


459 


adopted,  and  an  organization  was  effected.  He  was  made 
corresponding  secretary,  and  the  first  celebration  of  Children's 
Day  was  fixed  for  the  29th  of  October,  1882,  in  Bethel  Church, 
Baltimore,  Md.  To  make  the  occasion  as  emphatic  as  it  was 
historic,  original  lyrics  and  original  music  was  composed  by  Rev. 
Benjamin  T.  Tanner,  I).  D.,  then  editor  of  the  Christian  Recorder, 
and  also  by  the  senior  Bishop.  These  were  five  in  number. 
Dr.  Tanner  composed  one  on  the  theme:  "Our  Father's  Church." 
The  other  four  were  composed  by  the  senior  Bishop,  to  be  used 
for  the  special  training-  of  children  on  such  occasions,  or  on 
any  occasion  in  which  the  agency  of  children  is  to  be  employed 
in  raising  funds  for  benevolent  objects.  They  were  all  set  to 
music  for  the  occasion  by  Rev.  Levi  Coppin,  at  that  time  the 
young  pastor  of  the  mother  church  of  all  the  churches  south 
of  Maryland  on  the  Atlantic  coast  down  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 
The  music  of  these  lyrics  is  both  pretty  and  melodious.  The 
poetry  of  the  "Easter  Song"  was  composed  by  Bishop  D.  A. 
Payne  also,  and  set  to  music  by  Elder  Coppin,  to  celebrate 
Easter  of  1884,  in  behalf  of  the  cause  of  missions.  The  music  is 
soft,  sweet  and  full  of  life.  Elder  Coppin  has  also  composed  an- 
other entitled  "Consecration  of  an  Infant  Daughter."  About 
the  same  time  Elder  William  G.  Alexander  composed  three 
pieces  of  music  entitled  respectively,  "Personal  and  Home  Con- 
secration," "Consecrated  Home,"  and  "Reveal  Thyself  to  Me." 
For  rich  melody  this  last  one  is  the  gem  of  the  three.  We  have 
one  piece  composed  by  Rev.  J.  W.  Randolph  on  "Personal  and 
Home  Consecration,"  and  two  by  Miss  Bertha  Wolf  Cook — the 
first  bears  as  its  title  "  Consecration  of  an  Infant  Son,"  the  second 
that  of  "Consecration  of  Children."  Each  of  these  has  the  merit 
of  original  melody.* 

From  music  we  turn  to  the  consideration  of  the  fine  arts  as 
cultivated  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  The  first  efforts  to  cultivate 
artistic  talents  in  this  church  was  made  in  Baltimore  in  1849,  as 
the  subjoined  circular  will  show  : 

LITERARY  AND   ARTISTIC  DEMONSTRATION   FOR  THE  EN- 
COURAGEMENT OF  LITERATURE  AND  THE  FINE 
ARTS  AMONG  THE  COLORED  POPULATION. 
1.    For  the  best  original  poem,  written  in  heroic  verse,  in  meter  or 
blank,  not  containing  over  twelve  stanzas  nor  less  than  six,  of  eight  or  ten 

^Several  of  these  various  lyrics  may  be  found,  with  their  music,  at  the 
end  of  Bishop  Payne's  "  Treatise  on  Domestic  Education." 


460  .     History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

 ,  .  _a  

lines  each,  on  any  subject  which  the  author  may  choose,  one  silver  medal, 
worth  not  less  than  S10 ;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

2.  For  the  best  original  composition  in  sacred  music,  arranged  for  the 
piano  and  accompanied  with  the  voice,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not  less  than 
$10;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

3.  Also  for  the  best  original  sacred  piece,  arranged  for  the  guitar  and  ac- 
companied by  the  voice,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not  less  than  $10;  for  the 
next  best,  a  floral  crown.  By  the  best  we  mean  the  most  melodious  and 
accurate  according  to  the  laws  of  musical  science. 

4.  For  the  best  original  temperance  essay,  written  out  and  delivered, 
containing  not  over  five  pages  of  foolscap,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not  less 
than  $5  ;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

5.  For  the  best  piece  of  oil  painting  on  any  historical  subject,  taken 
from  the  Scriptures,  and  painted  on  canvass  not  less  than  two  feet  by  three, 
the  figure  or  figures  to  be  painted  in  full  length,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not 
less  than  $35  ;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

6.  For  the  best  piece  of  embroidery  in  floss  silk,  representing  a  wreath 
of  roses,  or  anything  else  preferred  by  the  lady,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not 
less  than  §10  ;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

7.  For  the  best  piece  of  embroidery  in  worsted,  representing  a  dog  or 
any  other  creature  which  the  lady  may  choose,  a  silver  medal,  worth  not 
less  than  SI ;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

8.  For  the  best  drawing  in  crayon  or  painting  in  water  colors,  a  silver 
medal,  worth  not  less  than  $4;  for  the  next  best,  a  floral  crown. 

All  persons  who  may  strive  to  obtain  the  above  premiums  must  send 
their  names  in  a  note,  countersigned  by  two  respectable  persons  known  to 
the  undersigned,  and  addressed  to  him  at  his  residence  in  Baltimore,  Md., 
74  Park  St.,  on  or  before  the  20th  of  March  next.  D.  A.  Payne. 

All  these  artistic  pieces  were  produced  except  the  oil  painting, 
and  the  premiums  were  awarded.  In  the  following  year  the 
same  scheme  was  worked  with  similar  effect  in  Philadelphia, 
Pa.  But  as  in  Baltimore,  so  in  Philadelphia,  the  oil  painting  was 
not  produced.  There  was.  however,  about  this  time  (1849)  a 
youth  by  the  name  of  Wilson,  a  son  of  a  member  of  Bethel,  in 
Philadelphia,  who  had  a  gift  in  this  direction,  but  it  was  uncul- 
tivated. He  was  tolerably  good  in  proportion,  but  defective  in 
coloring  and  grouping.  To  young  Wilson  the  same  patron  and 
encourager  of  the  fine  arts  gave  the  commission  for  an  oil  paint- 
ing to  represent  the  parents  of  his  first  wife,  Julia,  and  two 
sisters,  Caroline  and  Sarah  Becraft;  also  two  relatives,  a  lad  of 
seventeen  and  a  girl  of  fourteen.  In  this  painting,  to  which 
was  added  a  portrait  of  an  infant  daughter,  the  figures  were  seen 
grouped  in  a  garden  attached  to  the  old  homestead — the  old 
home  of  William  Becraft,  the  natural  son  of  Charles  Carroll,  of 


Music  and  the  Fine  Arts. 


161 


Carrollton.  It  is  still  in  existence,  and  is  certainly  the  work  of 
a  genius,  as  it  was  made  from  life,  all  being  original  likenesses. 
No  one  can  tell  to  what  eminence  he  mighl  have  attained  had  he 
been  trained  in  some  school  of  design  and  lived  long  enough  to 
have  had  his  talents  fully  developed. 

Coming  down  t<>  a  later  period,  we  find  Henry  Tanner,  of 
Philadelphia,  Pa.,  who  was  born  in  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  .June  21st, 
1869.  He  is  a  son  of  Bishop  B.  T.  Tanner.  The  first  picture 
which  he  placed  on  exhibition  was  entitled Inlet  House,"  at 
Atlantic  City,  N.J.  This  was  followed  by  "Meadows,"  at  the 
same  place.  Then  came  "Burnt  Pines  in  the  Adirondacks," 
which  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  of  Arts  in  Philadelphia. 
"Cape  May  Point,"  "Sheep  in  Pasture,"  "At  the  Watering 
Trough,"  "Dusty  Road  and  Cedars"  were  exhibited  at  the 
National  Academy  of  Design.  "Lions  at  Home"  was  exhibited 
and  sold  at  the  National  Academy  of  Design  at  New  York. 
"The  Adirondack  Reminiscence,"  "Study  of  a  Lion's  Head," 
"Evening  in  the  Pasture  Lot,"  "Sunset  at  Atlantic  City,"  "A 
November  Day,"  -('oast  of  Maine,"  "Fast  Friends,"  "A  Winter 
Evening,"  and  "A  Cavalry  Incident"  were  exhibited  at  the  Penn- 
sylvania Academy.  This  young  man  lias  made  models  of  sheep, 
cows,  deer,  lions  and  tigers  in  plaster  of  Paris;  also  some  models 
of  human  figures;  among  the  latter  is  a  fine  statuette  of  Bishop 
Payne.  His  pictures  have  been  exhibited  at  the  National 
Academy  of  Design  in  New  York,  the  Pennsylvania  Academy 
of  Fine  Arts,  Philadelphia;  the  Philadelphia  Society  of  Artists, 
the  Exhibition  at  Louisville,  Ky.;  the  Exposition  at  Chicago,  at 
New  Orleans,  at  the  Lydia  Art  Gallery,  and  at  Washington,  D.  C. 
Henry  0.  Tanner  was  born  in  the  bosom  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
baptized  in  it,  converted  in  it,  and  hopes  to  be  fully  developed 
in  her  bosom  as  an  artist.  It  is  trusted  that  he  may  realize  more 
than  "his  ardent  heart  could  dare  to  hope." 

Bethel — The  New  Mother  Church  in  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Perhaps  no  event  which  has  transpired  Avithin  the  last  thirty- 
five  years  indicate  the  progress  of  the  African  M.  E.  Church  more 
than  the  erection  of  the  fourth  temple  from  the  blacksmith-shop, 
in  17 — ,  when  Rev.  Richard  Allen  converted  it  into  a  "  Bethel" — 
House  of  God — for  such  is  the  meaning  of  the  word.  His 
progress  in  intellect,  in  sentiment,  in  planning  and  executing,  to 
reach  a  noble,  beneficent  end,  is  demonstrated  in  this  beautiful 


462 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


temple,  dedicated  the  last  Sunday  in  October,  1890.  The  black- 
smith-shop of  this  polished  generation  is  a  rough  thing.  What 
must  it  have  been  two  generations  past?  It  was  made  as  genteel 
and  convenient  as  was  possible  for  the  means  which  Allen  could 
command,  and  inasmuch  as  tradition  and  history  represent  him 
as  being  opposed  to  all  kind  of  demonstration  and  show,  we  may 
reasonably  infer  that  he  was  satisfied  with  simple  neatness.  This 
inference  amounts  to  certainty  when  we  recollect  the  second 
temple,  in  which  we  had  the  privilege  of  worshipping.  It  was 
as  plain  as  a  Quaker's  coat,  and  perfectly  free  from  ornament,  as 
were  all  Methodist  chapels  of  those  days.  Indeed,  during  the 
first  part  of  this  century,  and  all  of  a  hundred  years  after  Wesley 
organized  his  societies,  the  masses  of  his  followers  regarded  deco- 
rations in  the  house  of  (rod  as  sinful  things.  As  regards  the 
third  temple,  which  was  constructed  in  1841,  many  still  living 
know  that  it  was  a  fine  improvement  on  the  second.  It  is  true  to 
the  fact  to  say,  it  was  elegant,  so  elegant  that  many  were  heard 
to  say,  "How  can  any  one  worship  the  Lord  in  such  a  house?" 
And  yet.  the  pulpit  was  the  only  imposing  part  of  the  edifice. 
It  was  made  of  three  steps  rising  one  above  the  other,  and  every 
one  shorter  than  the  one  below  it,  so  as  to  give  a  pyramidal  form. 
Mahogany  columns  with  pentagonal  sides,  adorned  with  globes 
of  light,  assumed  a  rather  majestic  appearance.  But  who  can 
with  pen  or  pencil  accurately  describe  the  fourth  temple?  We 
shall  try  to  give  the  reader  of  these  lines  some  account  of  the 
new  Bethel : 

(a.)  Its  front  elevation,  sometimes  called  the  "facade,"  is  of 
rough  white  stone,  with  a  tower  on  the  north  side.  Its  whole 
facade  is  not  an  elaborate,  but  a  plain  gothic. 

(b.)  As  you  enter  the  front  door,  the  first  thing  that  arrests  one's 
attention  is  the  beauty  of  the  vestibule,  which  is  frescoed  in- 
grainly. 

(c.)  Opposite  the  door  of  entrance  is  the  door  of  admission  into 
the  lecture  room,  the  upper  portion  of  which  is  decorated  with 
stained  glass  of  various  colors  softly  blended.  By  two  staircases 
on  the  right  and  left,  of  easy  ascent,  you  are  led  up  into  the 
auditorium,  the  floor  of  which  is  laid  on  an  inclined  plane,  and 
on  this  the  pews  or  "  sittings  "  are  slightly  drawn  in  semicircles 
down  to  the  base  of  the  altar  or  pulpit.  The  seats  in  the  galleries 
are  drawn  in  straight  lines  with  the  "sittings"  below.  Lines 
of  light  drawn  from  every  eye  below  and  above  will  flash  into 


Music  and  the  Fine  Arts. 


468 


the  preacher's  eve,  and  rebounding,  bring  every  eve  in  a  line 
with  his.  What  is  true  of  the  sight  is  true  of  the  bearing. 
These  combinations  produce  an  almost  perfect  accoustic. 

(<l.)  The  galleries  are  lighted  by  three  immense  stained  glass 
windows,  which  are  subdivided  into  smaller  ones  for  ventilation 
and  for  increasing  or  diminishing  both  light  and  air.  Geometric 
figures  symbolize  the  existence,  oneness  and  trinity  of  tin;  Crea- 
tor of  the  universe.  The  idea  of  his  eternity  is  represented  by 
three  circles  interlacing  each  other,  and  bis  trinity  by  three  tri- 
angles united.  , 

(e.)  The  divine  spirit  of  comfort,  holiness,  truth,  intercession 
and  sanctification  is  represented  in  the  summit  of  the  facade  win- 
dow by  a  form  of  light  descending  from  heaven  to  enlighten  and 
to  bless  the  adoring  worshippers.  Over  the  pulpit  and  the  choir 
is  a  stained  glass  window.  There  is  painted  upon  it  a  Greek 
cross.  In  the  center  of  it  the  divine  dove  is  also  seen,  as  if  to 
inspire  the  singers  and  the  preacher  who  lead  the  holy  services. 

(/.)  In  the  window,  on  the  right  of  the  pulpit,  there  is  that 
great  emblem  of  the  Christian  faith — the  Cross — with  a  crown 
hanging  on  one  of  its  arms. 

(g.)  In  the  window,  on  the  left  His  star  is  seen  guiding  the 
shepherds  to  the  village  of  Bethlehem,  and  in  the  center  is  seen 
the  Great  Shepherd,  as  large  as  life,  with  a  land)  embosomed  and 
the  sheep  following  him.  If  memory  does  not  err,  the  .Madonna 
is  pictured  in  the  center  of  the  facade  window,  holding  the  in- 
fant Christ  in  her  arms.  All  the  geometric  figures  and  scriptural 
symbols  are  painted  in  the  colors  of  the  rainbow,  with  all  the 
tints  and  hues  of  the  precious  stones  mentioned  in  the  Revela- 
tion of  St.  John,  xxi.  11-21.  These  colors  of  the  rainbow, 
with  hues  and  tints  of  the  precious  stones,  are  so  softly  and 
perfectly  blended  as  to  make  a  glorious  scene  of  divine 
beauty,  and  so  profuse  as  to  resemble  the  magnificence  of  the 
starry  heavens.  As  to  the  appointments  in  the  basement,  they 
are  complete.  Each  sex  of  the  congregation  lias  its  own  toilet 
room;  the  church  officers  have  theirs,  and  the  pastor  his.  every 
one  of  which  is  distinct  and  separate — every  one  of  which  is  of 
the  most  approved  patent.  For  Sunday-school — both  infant  and 
adult — for  class  meetings,  leaders'  meetings  and  Quarterly  Con- 
ferences, complete  arrangements  are  made.  There  is  also  the 
pastor's  study,  the  sexton's  office,  the  library,  the  office  of  the 
librarian,  and  the  office  of  the  superintendent  of  the  Sunday- 


464 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


school.  The  whole  edifice  is  heated  by  a  steam  engine  in  the 
lower  basement. 

In  reflecting  upon  this  new  Bethel,  the  following  questions 
arise  : 

fa.)  Does  not  this  magnificent  temple  lift  us  up  above  our  con- 
dition ? 

(b.)  Does  it  confirm  us  in  this  present  condition  ?  Nay!  Does 
it  not  summon  us  upon  a  higher  plane  of  thought  and  action? 

(c.)  How  man\'  of  our  preachers  are  equal  to  the  duties,  the 
Christian  obligations  of  such  a  pastorate,  of  such  a  flock,  *of  such 
a  congregation  as  this  temple  will  naturally  attract? 

There  ought  to  be  a  succession  of  thoroughly  educated  pastors 
occupying  the  pulpit  of  our  New  Bethel  during  the  next  thirty- 
five  years.  Can  they  be  found?  By  thoroughly  educated  pastors 
we  mean  men  whose  intellectual  natures  have  been  well  disci- 
plined by  science,  whose  moral  nature  has  been  purified  by  the 
word  of  God,  and  whose  spiritual  nature  has  been  brought  in*  sub- 
jection to  the  spirit  of  love,  of  holiness,  and  of  righteousness. 
Such  pastors  will  not  aim  to  have  their  hearers  shout  and  sing,  but 
their  highest  aim  will  be  to  make  them  Christ-like — "the  salt  of 
the  earth  "— "  the  light  of  the  world  !  " 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 


EXTENSION  OF  THE  CHURCH  AT  HOME. 

Growth  in  Membership— Exaggerated  Statements — Increase  in  Two  De- 
cades— Preparations  for  Expansion — Political  Struggle  Between  Slavery 
and  Liberty — Door  Opened  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church— Summons  to  Enter 
the  Far  South — Under  Military  Protection— Missionaries  Selected— Fare- 
well Sermons— Missionaries  to  the  Freedmen — Penal  Laws  of  1834  in 
South  Carolina— Bishop  Payne's  Exile — First  Missionary  Operations  in 
the  South. 

SINCE  the  celebration  of  the  senior  Centenary  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  1866,  and  within  the  two  decades  found  between 
1863 and  1887,  she  has  more  than  trebled  herself.  According  to 
the  official  documents,  the  minutes  of  all  the  Annual  Conferences, 
she  then  enrolled  fifty  thousand  members.  At  the  General  Con- 
ference of  1884  she  enrolled  two  hundred  and  forty-five  thousand 
five  hundred  and  ninety-seven.  It  is  positively  affirmed  by 
many,  especially  those  who  accept  hyperbolic  statement,  that  we 
now  have  five  hundred  thousand  ;  but  the  accredited  minutes  of 
all  the  Annual  Conferences,  tabulated  and  published  by  the  sec- 
retary of  the  Parent  Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society, 
under  the  supervision  of  such  a  scrutinizing  eye  as  that  of  its 
president,  Bishop  Shorter,  contradicts  the  boasted  membership. 
Therefore  it  may  be  deemed  safe  to  say  that  at  the  present  (1887) 
we  enroll  about  three  hundred  thousand  members,  more  or  less. 
But  be  our  statement  more  or  less  than  the  facts,  if  we  take  the 
lowest  number  given  by  the  secretary  and  president  of  the  Parent 
Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society  within  two  decades,  we 
have  more  than  trebled  ourselves,  not  in  numbers  only,  but  in 
almost  everything  that  makes  us  remarkable  as  a  denomination 
of  poverty-stricken  people.  But  inasmuch  as  there  is  a  cause  for 
every  effect,  let  us  look  for  the  preparing  cause  of  our  marvelous 
growth  in  so  short  a  time.  Let  us  note  the  preparation  for  such 
an  expansion.  An  earthquake  is  a  sudden  and  unexpected  up- 
heaving and  sinking  of  the  earth's  surface,  and  doubtless  there 
is  a  long  chain  of  causes  for  so  terrible  an  event.  Subterranean, 
they  were  unfelt,  unseen,  unknown,  until  they  reached  their 
focal  power  and  focal  point.  Then  they  rent  the  earth,  and  like 
30  (  465  ) 


466 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


a  greal  anaconda,  overthrew  and  swallowed  up  whatsoever  was 
found  within  its  reach.  And  yet  we  are  informed  by  some  writers 
that  all  earthquakes  arc  preceded  by  rumbling  sounds.  So  also 
are  greal  revolutions,  civil,  political  and  religious,  preceded  by 
moral  suasion  more  or  less  enthusiastic,  by  civil  commotions 
more  or  less  violent. 

Going  no  further  hack  than  1815-29,  we  find  Benjamin  Lundy 
and  W  illiam  Lloyd  Garrison  at  work.  We  have  nothing  hut  the 
gentle  rumbling  sounds  of  moral  suasion  againsl  slavery.  But 
these  sounds  became  more  and  more  violent  from  1852  by  the 
resolutions  of  the  Democrat  ic  and  Whig  Conventions,  held  in  the 
city  of  Baltimore,  Md..  when  the  struggles  between  slavery  and 
Liberty  assumed  a  political  form. 

On  October  17,  1859,  the  military  raid  of  John  Brown  at  Har- 
per's Ferry  was  a  prophetic  blast  of  the  trumpet  of  eternal  and 
impartial  justice,  heralding  the  truth  and  the  fact  that  just  as 
slavery  was  beaten  in  Kansas,  and  driven  out  hy  "tin;  sword  of 
the  Lord,  and  of  Gideon,"  so  slavery  it  sell',  enthroned  on  Southern 
soil,  would  he  driven  out  of  the  Great  Republic  by  the  same 
sword  of  the  Lord,  and  of  Gideon.  In  the  eye  of  the  Christian 
philosopher,  the  former  (the  convention)  was  prophetic  of  the 
approaching  civil  war  in  favor  of  the  perpetuity  of  slavery;  the 
hitter  'the  mid )  prophetic  of  its  complete  overthrow  and  its  utter 
extinction.  So,  t  hen,  these  two  events,  which  quickly  followed 
each  other,  were  the  rumbling  sounds  of  that  political  earthquake 

which  shook  the  nation  from  center  to  circumference,  and  swal- 
lowed down  the  strongholds  of  the  greatest  despotism  and  abso- 
lutism that  ever  cursed  a  people  and  aroused  the  just  indignation 
of  heaven. 

Within  two  years  from  the  time  John  Brown  suffered  himself 
to  be  martyred  in  behalf  of  human  freedom,  there  were  tens  of 
thousands  of  .John  Browns  rushing  down  into  t  he  despotic  Sout  h 
In  enthrone  the  spirit  of  holy  freedom  and  impartial  justice. 
Such  were  the  faets  and  such  were  the  truths  which  were  among 
the  provident ial  arrangements  for  opening  a  wide  door  of  useful- 
ness to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  ;  at  the  same  time  it  was  opened  for 
the  varied  work  of  the  entire  American  Church — the  work  of 
Christian  education  and  Christian  civilization  of  emancipated 
slaves.  In  the  month  of  April,  1803,  on  the  17th  day  of  that 
month,  the  Lord  of  Hosts  summoned  our  itinerant  ministry  to 
enter  the  far  South,  and  on  the  20th  of  May  in  the  same  year, 


Extension  of  the  Church  at  Home.  467 

He  ordered  us  to  move  forward.  This  movement  he  placed  under 
military  protection.  Rev.  C.  C.  Leigh,  a  local  preacher  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  then  a  financial  officer  of  the  Na- 
tional Freedman  Aid  .Association,  at  the  Baltimore  Annual  Con- 
ference, on  the  27.th  of  April,  1863,  requested  Bishop  Payne  to  send 
two  of  our  itinerant  preachers  as  missionaries  to  care  for  t  he  moral, 
social  and  religious  interest  of  the  freedmen  in  South  Carolina, 
who  were  then  as  sheep  without  a  shepherd,  left  in  that  condi- 
tion by  their  former  white  pastors,  who  had  fled  before  the  ad- 
vancing and  conquering  army  of  the  Union.  Mr.  Leigh  gave;  a 
graphic  description  of  the  deplorable  condition  of  the  freedmen, 
which  moved  our  hearts  to  the  very  bottom.  He  was  requested 
to  tell  how  soon  he  would  have  these  missionaries  sent.  He  re- 
plied, "  Within  ten  days." 

The  following  preamble  and  resolutions  were  then  offered  by 
Elder  A.  W.  Wayman  : 

Whereas,  The  Rev.  C.  C.  Leigh,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
from  South  Carolina,  has  addressed  us  on  the  importance  of  the  appoint- 
ment of  missionaries  to  that  coast ;  and 

Whereas,  He  has  assured  the  Bishop  and  Conference  that  the  preacher 
or  preachers  will  receive  military  protection  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  we  accept  the  offer,  and  the  presiding  Bishops  be  requested 
to  appoint  one  from  this  Conference  and  one  from  the  New  York  Con- 
ference. 

In  accordance  with  this  preamble  and  resolution,  D.  A.  Payne 
selected  the  Rev.  James  Lynch,  of  the  Baltimore  Conference, 
and  Rev.  James  D.  S.  Hall,  of  the  New  York  Conference,  to  go 
as  missionaries  into  the  state  of  South  Carolina.  These  two 
men  were  very  unlike  each  other — James  Lynch  was  always 
hopeful,  James  Hall  always  fearful.  Lynch  was  the  bold  lion, 
Hall  the  timid  lamb ;  Hall  was  the  witty  Irishman,  Lynch  the 
far-seeing  statesman ;  Lynch  was  born  to  be  the  skillful  organizer, 
Hall  the  trembling  follower,  ready  to  run  at  the  barking  of  a 
rat-terrier.  They  preached  their  farewell  sermons  in  Sullivan 
Street  A.  M.  E.  Church,  New  York,  Sunday,  May  17th,  1863. 
Lynch  preached  in  the  afternoon.  His  mother,  sister,  and  five 
of  the  white  pastors  of  the  city  were  present  to  hear  him.  As 
soon  as  he  had  finished  his  eloquent  discourse,  one  of  the  latter 
said,  "  Bishop  Payne,  that  young  man  can  do  more  good  among 
the  freedmen  than  a  regiment  of  white  preachers."  One  may 
imagine  the  effect  of  this  sermon  upon  his  mother  and  sister. 


468 


Bid&ry  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


The  latter  wa.s  so  profoundly  moved  that  in  the  evening  of  the 
same  day  she  called  upon  Bishop  Payne  to  know  if  she  could  be 
sent  also  as  a  missionary  teacher  to  the  freedmen.  Her  desire 
was  soon  gratified  by  being  sent  at  the  expense  of  the  ladies  of 
one  of  the  white  Baptist  churches  in  the  city  of  New  York,  and 
she  was  stationed  at  Beaufort,  8.  C.  Rev.  James  D.  S.  Hall,  at 
that  time  the  pastor  of  Sullivan  Street  A.  M.  E.  Church,  preached 
his  farewell  sermon  at  night,  which  was  interesting  and  im- 
pressive. The  following  Wednesday,  May  20,  1863,  these  mission- 
aries sailed  out  of  the  harbor  of  New  York  on  the  government 
steamer  Arago.  The  military  officers  on  board  were  numerous. 
They  were  chiefly  captains  and  colonels.  Among  the  numerous 
passengers  were  four  white  women,  going  as  missionary  teachers 
of  the  freedmen.  They  went,  I  believe,  in  the  same  spirit  as 
missionaries  go  to  the  heathen  in  Africa,  Asia,  or  Polynesia.* 

O  thou  King  of  kings,  thou  Lord  of  lords!  God  of  the  races' 
Loving  Father  of  humanity!  how  marvelous  are  thy  dealings 
with  the  nations,  with  the  governments,  writh  the  races,  with  the 
families  of  the  earth,  with  individuals! 

In  1834-35  the  state  of  South  Carolina  enacted  penal  laws  pro- 
hibiting both  white  and  free  colored  persons  from  teaching  slaves 
to  read  and  write,  under  which  laws  Bishop  Payne,  when  a  young 
man.  was  forced  to  close  a  flourishing  school  of  free  colored 
child ren.t  In  May,  1863,  he  beheld  free  white  and  colored 
preachers  under  military  protection,  on  a  ship  of  the  United 
States  Government,  sailing  to  South  Corolina  to  teach  the  eman- 
cipated slaves  how  to  read,  how  to  write,  how  to  cipher,  how  to 
study  geography  and  grammar  and  history,  and  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States;  how  to  think,  and  speak  and  act  as 
American  freemen!  Only  the  sword  of  the  Lord  and  of  Gideon 
could,  within  the  life  of  a  single  generation,  bring  to  pass  such 
wonderful  changes! 

The  Arago  is  an  historic  ship.  Standing  upon  the  wharf  gaz- 
ing upon  her  till  she  fades  away  below  the  horizon  of  the  Atlan- 
tic ocean,  the  heart  went  with  her  in  earnest  progress — the 
ejaculations  of  faith  that  the  Lord  would  give  her  a  safe  voyage 
and  land  her  living  cargo  safely  at  Hilton's  Head,  S.  C. 

*  Their  names  were  Miss  A.  Bingham,  Miss  E.  C.  Konkling,  Miss  Sarah 
Danby  and  Miss  Eliza  Wells. 

t  There  were  about  five  flourishing  colored  schools  in  Charleston  at  that 
time,  supported  by  beloved  families,  and  taught  by  colored  teachers. 


Extension  of  the  Church  at  Home. 


The  two  James  commenced  their  operations  at  Porl  Royal, 
Edisto  and  Beaufort,  S.  C,  and  as  soon  as  the  conquering 
Union  troops  entered  Savannah  and  Charleston  James  Lynch 
followed  in  their  footsteps  and  organized  the  forsaken  sheep  into 
the  fold  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 

Mav  9th,  L865,  Bishop  I).  A.  Payne  sailed  oul  of  New  York 
harbor,  accompanied  by  Elder  .James  A.  Handy  and  licentiates 
James  II.  A.  Johnson  and  Theophilus  Steward.  They  sailed  in 
the  same  government  ship,  Arago,  as  additional  missionaries  to 
the  freedmen  of  the  Smith.  On  the  13th  they  sailed  into  the 
harbor  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  and  landed  at  its  dock  Saturday 
afternoon,  between  four  and  five  o'clock,  under  as  clear  a  sky  as 
when  the  first  named  left  Charleston,  just  about  thirty  years 
and  four  days  from  the  hour  lie  was  exiled  by  the  force  of 
Carolina's  laws  for  the  crime  of  teaching  colored  children  how  to 
think  and  speak,  according  to  the  commandments  of  the  "King 
of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords."  Sunday  morning  at  the  dawn  of 
day  he  went  to  prayer-meeting  at  the  Independent  or  Congrega- 
tional Church  of  color.  At  three  o'clock  j\  m.  he  preached  in 
the  colored  Presbyterian  Church  on  Calhoun  street,*  near  King. 
At  night  he  preached  at  old  Bethel,  then  under  the  pastoral 
care  of  Rev.  Theodore  Lewis,  a  missionary  representing  the 
great  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  which,  in  1844,  was  forced 
out  of  Charleston  on  account  of  its  anti-slavery  character  and 
attitude. 

Monday  morning,  May  16,  1805,  Bishop  Payne  organized  the 
South  Carolina  Conference  in  the  colored  Presbyterian  Church 
already  designated.  Two  itinerant  elders,  Lynch  and  Handy, 
two  itinerant  licentiates,  Theodore  G.  Steward  and  James  H.  A. 
Johnson,  who  were  subsequently  ordained  deacons,  and  one  local 
preacher  by  the  name  of  William  Bently,  were  the  only  persons 
present  at  the  opening  of  this  Conference.  Subsequently,  Elders 
R.  H.  Cain  and  Anthony  S.  Stanford,  from  New  York  and  Phila- 
delphia; George  S.  Rue,  from  the  New  England  Conference; 
and  the  following  brethren,  natives  of  the  state,  joined  us,  viz: 
Charles  Bradwell,  N.  Murphy,  Robert  Taylor,  and  Richard 
Vanderhost,  subsequently  one  of  the  Bishops  of  the  C.  M.  E. 
Church.  The  whole  number  of  persons  who  united  with  our 
Connection  was  supposed  to  be  about  four  thousand.    This  num- 

;  The  present  Calhoun  street  was  then  called  Boundary  street,  because 
it  was  the  north  limit  of  Charleston,  S.  C. 


470 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


ber  includes  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  along 
the  coast  and  islands.  Reports  on  temperance,  missions  and  edu- 
cation were  discussed  and  adopted.  A  historic  and  literary  soci- 
ety was  organized,  also  a  preacher's  aid  society.  Thus  organized, 
the  South  Carolina  Conference  was  like  a  ship  sent  to  conquer 
other  lands  in  the  South — farther  south. 

May  9th,  1866,  Bishop  Payne  Left  Wilmington,  N.  C,  at  the 
head  of  twelve  preachers — the  apostolic  number — bound  to 
Savannah,  Ga.,  to  hold  the  first  annual  meeting  of  the  South 
Carolina  Conference,  at  which  place  forty  itinerant  preachers  were 
ordained,  of  whom  fourteen  were  elders.  Seven  superintendents 
were  appointed  to  plant  and  train  misssion  churches.  These 
^vere  Anthony  L.  Stanford  and  Henry  M.  Turner,  for  Georgia; 
George  W.  Broadie  and  Samuel  B.  Williams,  for  North  Carolina  ; 
Augustus  T.  Carr  and  R.  H.Cain,  for  South  Carolina;  Charles  H. 
Pierce  for  Florida  and  Alabama.  This  field  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  had  been  extended  on  the  Atlantic  coast  from  Washing- 
ton, D.  C.j  on  the  Potomac,  and  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth,  Va.,  on 
the  Elizabeth  River,  to  Tampa,  on  the  continent,  and' Key  West, 
in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  As  regards  the  pioneer  work  done  in  it, 
the  most  active  and  successful  laborers  were  Rev.  John  M.  Brown, 
who  was  stationed  at  Norfolk,  Va.;  Rev.  James  Lynch,  who 
had  charge  of  the  sea  islands,  Charleston  and  Savannah;  Rev. 
Anthony  L.  Stanford,  who  succeeded  Lynch  at  Savannah,  and 
Rev.  Richard  H.  Cain,  who  succeeded  James  Lynch  atCharleston. 
Stanford  was  one  of  the  most  eloquent  young  preachers  that 
ever  appeared  in  our  pulpits.  He  was  made  superintendent  of 
missions  in  south  Georgia,  but  he  did  nothing  outside  of  Savan- 
nah. The  great  work  in  north  and  south  Georgia  was  accom- 
plished through  the  activity,  self-denial  and  energy  of  Superin- 
tendent H.  M.  Turner.  Superintendent  Cain  was  equally  active 
and  successful  in  the  southern  portion  of  South  Carolina,  whilst 
Superintendent  Carr  pushed  the  work  into  Georgetown  and 
vicinity.  If  Superintendent  Broadie  had  not  become  one  of  the 
freedmen's  bankers  he  might  have  become  equally  active  and 
successful  in  spreading  the  work  through  North  Carolina.  Su- 
perintendent Pierce,  who  had  authority  to  open  the  gates  of 
Florida  and  Alabama,  would  have  accomplished  more  than  he 
did,  but  as  R.  H.  Cain  allowed  himself  to  be  elected  senator  of 
the  proud  state  of  South  Carolina,  and  thereby  damaged  his 
usefulness  as  an  embassador  of  the  Cross,  so  also,  did  Pierce  in 


Extension  of  tht  Church  at  Home. 


171 


Florida,  and  so  also  did 'Punier  in  Georgia.  The  only  apology 
which  can  be  made  for  them  is  that  for  intelligence  and  organiz- 
ing power  their  equals  could  not  be  found  in  the  laity,  hence 
politics  laid  hold  of  them  and  by  a  kind  of  conscription  forced 
them  into  the  army  of  politicians. 

Almost  simultaneously  with  the  extension  of  the  Church  on  the 
Atlantic  coast  was  her  expansion  in  the  West.  In  December,  L863, 
the  Macedonian  cry  came  from  Nashville,  Tennessee.  In  response 
to  the  invitation  of  the  col  ore*  1  members  of  the  Methodist  ( Ihurch 
South,  Bishop  Payne  took  letters  of  introduction  from  Secretary 
Chase,  of  the  Treasury,  and  Secretary  Stanton,  of.  the  War  De- 
partment, to  Governor  Andrew  Johnson,  whom  he  could  not  see 
on  his  arrival,  on  the  6th  of  December — by  which  we  mean  to 
say  that  he  arrived  at  Nashville  on  the  evening  of  the  5th,  and 
called  at  the  capitol  on  the  6th  to  present  his  letters  to  the 
governor,  but  he  was  too  much  interested  in  military  affairs  to 
give  him  audience.  He  therefore  called  upon  the  comptroller 
of  the  state,  whom  he  found  as  inquisitive  as  he  was  communi- 
cative and  courteous.  He  made  many  inquiries  concerning  the 
numerical  strength  and  worth  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  of  the 
condition  of  the  freedmen  in  southeastern  Virginia,  and  of  the 
condition  of  the  people  of  color  in  Ohio,  especially  those  in 
Greene  county.  All  these  questions  were  answered  according  to 
the  Bishop's  best  knowledge. 

Application  for  admission  into  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  was  made  on  Tuesday,  December  15th,  about  twrenty 
minutes  after  noon.  This  application  was  made  by  a  committee 
of  seven,  whose  chairman  was  Rev.  Napoleon  Merry,  a  local 
preacher  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  South,  in  whose  house  the  meet- 
ing was  held.  Brother  Merry  was  a  man  of  fine  presence  and  of 
blameless  character.  The  committee  presented  the  fblb&wing 
instrument: 

Whereas,  It  is  the  opinion  of  us  whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed 
that  a  vast  majority  of  the  ministers  and  members  of  the  Methodist 
Church,  South,  have  proven  themselves  disloyal  to  the  Constitution  and 
Government  of  the  United  States  by  identifying  themselves  with  those 
who  are  now  in  open  rebellion  against  it ;  and 

Whereas,  We  believe  it  to  be  our  duty  as  Christians  and  citizens  to 
bear  our  testimony  against  such  unjustifiable  conduct,  as  also  to  testify  our 
own  loyalty  to  the  country  which  gave  us  birth  and  the  constitutional 
government  which  controls  as  well  by  deeds  as  by  words  ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  1st.  That  we  now,  by  our  own  voluntary  act,  do  transfer  our 


472 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


membership  and  Church  relations  to  that  ecclesiastical  organization  known 
by  the  name  and  title  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the 
United  States  of  America. 

Resolved,  2d.  That  a  committee  of  several  be  appointed  to  invite  the  Rev. 
Bishop  Payne  to  organize  us  into  a  branch  of  the  said  A.  M.  E.  Church, 
and  take  us  under  his  episcopal  care. 

Tuesday,  the  loth,  and  Wednesday,  the  16th  of  December, 
1863,  Bishop  Payne  took  into  the  bosom  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
the  two  chapels  named  Caper's  and  Andrew's,  with  their  stew- 
ards, leaders  and  trustees.  Their  names  were  changed  into  St. 
John's  and  St.  Paul's,  and  their  officers  were  made  to  swear  alle- 
giance to  the  government  and  Discipline  of  our  Connection. 
Such  was  the  beginning  of  the  extension  beyond  Kentucky. 
Next  came  Memphis.  All  other  towns  on  the  eastern  and  west- 
ern banks  of  the  Mississippi  followed.  Then  Texas  on  the  Gulf. 
From  the  Sunday  on  which  that  zealous  superintendent,  William 
Paul  Quinn,  organized  a  branch  of  our  Connection  in  St.  Louis, 
Mo.,  to  the  period  of  the  expulsion  of  slaveholders  from  Kansas, 
our  boundaries  were  confined  to  that  city  and  some  two  or  three 
places  within  twenty  or  thirty  miles  from  it.  In  September, 
1859,  we  sent  our  first  missionary  into  Kansas.  He  was  a  young 
man  named  John  M.  Wiikerson,  and  was  sent  from  the  Missouri 
Annual  Conference  to  Leavenworth  City,  where  our  first  society 
was  organized.  Since  then  the  Connection  has  extended  itself 
to  the  summit  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  that  one  society  has 
multiplied  itself  into  two  Annual  Conferences  and  forty-five 
pastors,  with  two  thousand  three  hundred  and  one  members. 

In  the  Kansas  Conference  for  1887-88  may  be  found  eighteen 
pastors  and  twenty  appointments,  with  one  thousand  three  hun- 
dred and  twenty-one  members.  To  supervise  these  pastors  and 
the  flocks  under  their  care,  one  presiding  elder  has  been  ap- 
pointed. 

Beyond  Kansas  the  work  has  been  pushed  into  the  state  of 
Nebraska  as  far  northwest  as  Beatrice,  Lincoln  and  Omaha.  The 
present  condition  of  this  w  idening  field  can  be  seen  by  the  facts 
from  the  report  of  the  presiding  elder,  J.  W.  Barton,  made  up  to 
the  17th  of  October,  1887.  Tin1  Kansas  Conference  was  then 
busy  in  holding  its  Twelfth  Annual  Session  in  St.  John's  Chapel, 
Bishop  John  M.  Brown,  D.  D.,  D.  C.  L.,  presiding.  The  secretary- 
in-chief  was  Rev.  James  H.  Turner;  recording  secretary,  Rev. 
Daniel  R.  Jones;  statistical  secretary,  Rev.  George  C.  Booth,  D.D. 


Extension  of  the  Church  at  Home. 


173 


This  Kansas  Conference's  report  of  the  Leavenworth  District 
states  thai  at  every  point  the  charge  has  been  made  better  by  the 
year  of  labor.  Tonganoxie,  Oskaloosa,  Quindaro,  White  Cloud, 
South  Wyandotte,  South  Atchison.  Port  William,  Bonner 
Springs,  Holton,  Beatrice,  Highland,  Nebraska  City,  Hiawatha, 
Atchison,  Leavenworth,  Leavenworth  Mission  (which  was  organ- 
ized by  Rev.  J.  M.  Turner,  pastor  at  Leavenworth),  Lincoln, 
Omaha  and  Wyandotte  are  the  points  mentioned  as  prosper- 
ing. There  was  but  one  presiding  elder  for  this  Conference. 
Wyandotte  is  reported  as  possessing  the  largest,  most  loyal  and 
prosperous  church  west  of*  the  Missouri  River.  These  churches 
were  under  such  men  as  Brother  Henry  Elya,  Tonganoxie;  Rev. 
P.  P.  Dorsey,  Oskaloosa;  Rev.  S.  P.  Jones,  Quindaro;  Rev.  -John 
Breiver,  White  Cloud;  Brother  N.  Jackson,  South  Wyandotte; 
and  Port  William.  Rev.  Frank  Scruggs  had  served  Bonner 
Springs;  Brother  T.  J.  Peek,  Holton;  Rev.  David  R.  Jones, 
Beatrice;  Rev.  Richard  Jackson,  Highland;  Rev.  H.  W.  King, 
Nebraska  City.  Rev.  Milo  Carr  was  at  Hiawatha;  Rev.  R.  Sey- 
mour, Atchison;  Rev.  James  H.  Turner,  Leavenworth;  Rev. 
J.  H.  Turner,  Leavenworth  Mission;  Rev.  W.  A.  Moore,  Lincoln; 
Rev.  P.  A.  Hubbard,  Omaha;  Rev.  G.  C.  Booth,  Wyandotte. 
The  finances  were  reported  in  excellent  condition — the  larger 
churches  (some  of  them)  reaching  one  dollar  per  capita ;  others 
seldom  falling  below  twenty-five  cents,  but  the  dominant  factors 
being  one  dollar  or  fifty  cents  per  capita.  In  the  South  Kansas 
Conference,  besides  the  Conference  Missionary  Society,  we  find 
one  mite  missionary  and  one  literary  society  report. 

This  extension  of  our  Connection  west  of  the  Mississippi  does 
not  go  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  Connection,  as  we 
have  already  seen,  had  sent  her  missionaries  into  California 
eight  or  ten  years  before  the  Civil  War  in  Kansas  and  the  still 
greater  Civil  War  created  by  the  slaveholders  of  the  South  to 
perpetuate  slavery  in  the  United  States.  Perhaps  it  will  be  a 
more  accurate  statement  to  say  that  her  first  societies  were 
organized  before  that  time.  Our  first  regularly  appointed  mis- 
sionary, Elder  Thomas  M.  D.  Ward,  was  sent  to  California  in 
1854.  He  sailed  in  the  ship  "Star  of  the  West,"  on  April  22d. 
He  was  then  thirty-one  years  old.  He  arrived  at  San  Francisco 
May  19th,  1854.  He  was  met  at  the  wharf  by  Rev.  Darius 
Stokes,  Fielding  Smithea,  John  C.  Lewis  and  Jeremiah  Bank 
Sanderson — all  of  whom  were  local  preachers  borne  on  the  tide 


474 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


of  adventure  from  the  eastern  states  to  California  in  search  of 
gold.  Except  Rev.  F.  Smithea,  all  have  passed  away  from  Cali- 
fornia to  the  regions  of  eternal  life.  Brother  Ward  found  that 
the  church  had  been  organized  through  the  activity  of  a  local 
preacher  from  Baltimore,  by  the  name  of  Philip  Jackes,  and  a 
white  Methodist  preacher;  but  it  was  all  broken  up  for  the  want 
of  a  regular  pastor's  care.  The  fractional  parts  he  reorganized 
in  August,  1867.  Assisted  by  Brother  Stokes,  he  also  organized 
a  society  at  Grass  Valley  in  1854.  The  chapel  built  by  the 
society  was  dedicated  the  31st  of  the  following  December.  Elder 
Ward  also  organized  the  church  at  Los  Angeles  some  time  in 
1860.  At  this  point  he  purchased  a  lot,  and  upon  it  he  erected  a 
house  of  worship.  At  Colona,  Placerville,  Petalama,  Portland, 
Nevada  City,  Mansville,  Sacramento,  Stockton,  Chico,  Red  Bluff, 
Marysville,  Carson  and  Virginia  City  he  also  organized  societies. 
He  reorganized,  purchased  a  lot,  and  had  a  chapel  built  at  Den- 
ver, Colorado,  November,  1871.  At  San  Francisco  and  Sacra- 
mento he  was  persistently  opposed  by  Elder  John  J.  Moore,  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Zion  Connection;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  was 
aided  by  the  preachers  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

Such  has  been  the  expansion  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  at  home 
— first  eastward,  then  westward;  then  south  ward,  south-westward 
and  westward  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Pacific  coast. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 


EXTENSION  IN  FOREIGN  LANDS. 


The  Island  of  Hayti — Aborigines— Santo  Domingo— Historical  Fuels 
Abolishment  of  Slavery— Failure  to  Restore  Slavery  in  Hayti — Haytian 
Heroes— The  Haytians  and  the  A.  M.  E.  Church — The  Missionary  Work 
up  to  1880 — Re-establishment  of  the  Mission  in  Hayti — Work  in  Port- 
au-Princ< — Early  Work  in  Santo  Domingo — Missionaries  in  the  Spanish 
Part — Work  in  Africa — The  Missionary  Society  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church 
— Our  Own  Foundations. 

^TTMIF  island  of  Hayti  belongs  to  the  Western  Continent,  and 


I  is  related  to  the  United  States  in  the  following  manner: 
The  Spanish  island,  called  Cuba,  has  nearly  the  form  of  a, 
caterpillar,  with  its  curved  tail  dipping  into  the  mouth  of  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  its  body  lying  directly  southeast  of  Florida,  and 
its  head  curved  towards  Hayti,  which  is  directly  southeast  of  it, 
and  is  second  in  dimension  to  Cuba.  Both  of  these  islands  are  the 
great  islands  of  the  Antilles,  and  constitute  the  keys  to  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  and  both  are  warmed  by  its  waters.  The  aborigines 
were  red  men,  whose  history  previous  to  its  discovery  by  Colum- 
bus (1492)  is  lost  in  the  unknown  past,  but  were  reduced  to 
slavery  by  the  Spaniards  and  the  French. 

The  east  side  of  Hayti,  called  Santo  Domingo,  was  mastered  by 
the  Spaniards,  and  is  still  ruled  over  by  their  descendants.  They 
are  chiefly  men  of  mixed  blood,  who  are  called  throughout  the 
West  Indian  Islands  "  persons  of  color,"  in  contradistinction  to 
the  Negroes,  who  are  the  dominant  numbers  of  the  French  side. 
The  French,  or  west  side,  was  settled  by  immigrants  from  France. 
These  facts  account  for  the  two  distinct  languages  on  one  and  the 
same  island.  They  also  account  for  their  characteristic  differ- 
ences. 

History  tells  us  that  Christopher  Columbus  built  the  first  fort, 
and  laid  the  foundations  for  the  first  town  in  the  western  hemi- 
sphere on  this  historic  island.  Slavery  was  introduced  on  the 
island  by  the  Spaniards,  and  the  red  men  were  their  first  slaves, 
but  they  soon  melted  away  before  the  white  man's  oppression  as 
wax  before  the  fire,  so  that  in  1507  the  number  of  natives  had, 


(  475  ) 


476 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


by  hunger,  toil  and  the  sword,  been  reduced  from  a  million  to 
sixty  thousand,  and  all  this  destruction  of  the  Caribbeans,  as  the 
red  men  were  called,  was  accomplished  within  fifteen  years. 
They  were  too  weak  a  race  to  endure  the  white  man's  yoke  of 
iron  and  his  heavy  burdens,  and,  therefore,  out  of  pure  benevo- 
lence to  them  alone,  Las  Casas,  a  Roman  Catholic  priest,  and 
"other  leaders  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  who  were  desirous 
to  prevent  the  extinction  "  of  these  red  men,  recommended  the 
substitution  of  negroes  from  Africa,  either  because  their  bones 
and  muscles  were  larger  and  stronger  than  those  of  the  Caribbean 
Indians,  or  because  their  natural  patience  under  the  yoke  better 
fitted  them  to  bear  and  to  carry  the  heavy  burdens  of  slavery,  or 
because  the  God  of  all  the  races  and  Father  of  all  the  families  of 
the  earth  had  for  the  Negro  a  higher  and  nobler  future  than  he 
had  for  the  Indian  on  that  island  and  elsewhere.  The  abomin- 
able system  of  shivery  was  first  abolished  by  law  by  the  French 
National  Assembly,  May  15th,  1795. 

History  further  tells  us  that  Napoleon  I.  "succeeded  in  restoring 
slavery  in  most  of  the  French  colonies,  but  failed  in  Havti.  His 
attempt  resulted  in  one  of  the  most  terrible  and  bloody  struggles 
for  freedom  in  the  history  of  the  world.  The  heroes  of  this 
movement  to  crush  out  slavery  and  to  maintain  the  free- 
dom of  the  blacks  forever  on  that  island  were  led  by  Toussaint 
L'Ouverture,  a  pure  negro,  with  royal  blood  flowing  through  his 
veins — for  his  grandfather  was  the  "  king  of  Ardra,  one  of  the 
most  powerful  and  wealthy  monarchson  the  west  coast  of  Africa." 
Toussaint  was  not  only  a  warrior  of  the  first  order,  but  a  con- 
summate statesman.  In  the  administration  of  the  government, 
when  he  was  its  governor,  offices  of  trust  and  honor  were  not 
confined  to  color,  but  to  merit.  Perhaps  it  was  this  confidence 
in  the  integrity  of  white  men  that  led  to  his  untimely  and  un- 
natural death  by  starvation  in  one  of  Napoleon's  dungeons  in 
the  Jura  mountains.  But  the  brave  Dessalines  completed  the 
work  which  Toussaint  began.  No  slave  has  breathed  on  that 
island  since,  and  the  slaveholder's  voice  has  been  silenced  forever. 
But  in  all  ages,  and  among  all  races,  slavery  has  demoralized  both 
the  slave  and  the  master.  The  truthfulness  of  ■  this  statement  is 
demonstrated  by  the  history  of  the  Jews.  All  the  vices  of  their 
Egyptian  masters  were  adopted  by  them,  and  stained  their  entire 
subsequent  history.  What  is  true  of  the  Israelites  has  been  true 
of  the  Haytians.    Added  to  the  vicious  habits  of  their  Spanish 


Extension  in  Foreign  Lands. 


177 


and  French  masters  were  fetichism  and  cannibalism,  heightened 
and  intensified  by  Romish  superstition,  and  combined  with  all 
these  evils,  there  were  the  envy  and  jealousy  already  existing 
between  the  men  of  mixed  blood  and  the  blacks,  and  thus  we 
see  abundant  reasons  for  the  evils  which  have  broken  the  unity 
and  distracted  the  peace  of  the  Haytians,  and  which  have  also 
damaged  their  commerce  and  weakened  their  political  strength 
and  power. 

To  aid  in  making  the  Ilaytian  nationality  and  government 
st rong,  powerful  and  commanding  among  the  civilized  nations  of 
the  earth  ought  to  be  the  desire  and  the  aim  of  the  African  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church.  As  the  Haytians  have  completely 
thrown  off  the  white  man's  yoke  in  their  national  affairs,  so  have 
the  leaders  and  members  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  ecclesiastical 
affairs.  As  the  Haytians  have  been  endeavoring  to  demonstrate 
the  ability  of  the  Negro  for  self-government  during  a  period  of 
over  eighty-four  years,  so  also  have  the  leaders  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  been  endeavoring  to  demonstrate  the  ability  of  the  Negro 
for  self-government  during  a  period  of  seventy-two  years.  But 
what  people  can  succeed  in  self-government  unless  they  base  it  on 
the  rock  foundations  of  Christian  principles?  These;  principles 
will  always  create  and  perpetuate  a  public  sentiment  antagonistic 
to  vice  and  crime,  individual  and  national.  Now  it  is  just  at 
this  point  that  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  ought  to 
come  to  the  aid  of  the  Haytians,  and  if  she  comprehended  the 
attitude  into  which  the  God  of  history  has  led  her,  she  would 
realize  the  Macedonian  cry.  This  cry  comes  to  her  from  the 
emigrants  who  left  the  United  States  to  enjoy  unfettered — we 
ought  to  say — equal  personal  freedom  and  political  rights  in  the 
domains  of  the  black  Republic.  Many  of  these  emigrants  were 
members  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  who,  finding  themselves  in  a 
foreign  land,  surrounded  by  a  population  half  Roman  Catholic 
and  half  heathen,  called  upon  Bishop  Allen  to  send  them  an  or- 
dained missionary  to  care  for  their  moral  and  spiritual  education  ; 
not  to  ignore  the  moral  for  the  spiritual,  nor  the  spiritual  for  the 
moral,  but  to  care  for  both,  and  to  cherish  both  even  as  the  God 
of  Mt.  Sinai  did  bind  them  together. 

The  circumstances  and  the  hour  demanded  the  man,  and  the 
man  of  that  hour  in  the  history  of  that  island  was  Scipio  Beanes. 
He  was  found  in  the  Baltimore  Conference,  as  has  elsewhere  been 
stated  in  detail,    He  succeeded  in  organizing  several  societies  in 


478 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


the  French  part  of  the  island.  He  returned  to  the  United  States 
and  made  his  report  at  the  Baltimore  Conference,  and  went  back 
again  to  Hayti,  and  labored  in  this,  our  first  missionary  field, 
until  the  Lord  of  the  vineyard  called  him  to  rest  from  his  toils. 
His  ashes  are  still  enshrined  in  the  bosom  of  Hayti.  He  was 
succeeded  by  Rev.  Richard  Robinson,  but,  for  reasons  unknown 
to  the  Church,  he  returned  home  to  the  United  States,  where  he 
labored  sometimes  in  the  Baltimore  Conference,  sometimes  in  the 
New  York  Conference,  and  sometimes  in  the  Philadelphia  Con- 
ference, in  which  he  at  last  finished  his  labors  upon  this  earth. 

The  young  and  weak  societies  were  left  in  the  hands  of  un- 
trained local  preachers  who  struggled  according  to  their  abilities 
to  perpetuate  the  work,  which  passed  through  many  vicissitudes. 
Finding  themselves  unequal  to  the  difficulties  which  sprung  up 
in  their  way,  they  again  sent  over  the  Atlantic  sea  the  Macedo- 
nian cry.  Again  and  again  it  was  heard,  but  Bishop  Morris 
Brown  had  neither  the  men  nor  the  money  to  respond  to  this 
appeal;  therefore  our  Haytian  brethren,  the  majority  of  whom 
were  natives  of  the  United  States,  organized  themselves  into  a 
religious  body  called  the  "Union  Methodist  Church,"  and  in  this 
form  they  tried  to  exist,  but  at  last  the  lack  of  competent 
leaders  caused  them  to  be  reduced  to  a  mere  cypher.  Once 
more  the  Macedonian  cry,  up  to  1842,  was  expressed  by 
letters.  Finally  they  sent  a  brother  by  the  surname  of  William- 
son to  meet  the  Philadelphia  Conference  in  the  city  of  Philadel- 
phia, and  then  and  there,  by  letter  and  oral  statements,  he 
laid  the  claims  of  our  Haytian  brethren  before  the  Church. 
The  letter  was  read,  the  statements  considered,  and  the  accred- 
ited agent  was  recommended  to  the  Connection  for  aid;  but,  as  I 
have  already  stated,  he  obtained  little  or  nothing. 

Subsequent  to  the  death  of  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  and  during 
the  lifetime  of  Bishop  Quinn,  letters  calling  for  aid  were  sent 
from  Port-au-Prince,  the  last  one  coming  from  Samana,  Santo 
Domingo.  This  touched  the  heart  of  the  Connection  as  no  other 
did,  and  Bishop  J.  M.  Brown,  then  president  of  the  Home  and 
Foreign  Missionary  Society,  was  authorized  to  respond  to  it,  but 
a  controversy  arising,  his  plans  were  not  put  in  execution.  From 
1878  to  1880  Bishop  James  A.  Shorter  managed  the  work.  At 
the  General  Conference  of  1880  the  work  of  re-establishing  our 
mission  in  Hayti  was  formally  submitted  to  Bishop  Shorter,  who 
promised  to  execute  it  "if  he  had  to  go  through  a  man  as  large  as 


K.r tension  in  Foreign  Lands. 


\7.) 


Elder  Robinson."  This  pledge  the  energetic  Bishop  made  good, 
and  in  its  accomplishment  he  had  the  efficienl  service  of  Elder 
•James  M.  Townsend,  the  secretary  of  the  missionary  depart- 
menl  of  our  church,  and  Elder  Charles  W.  Mossel  and  wife  as 
missionaries.  Brother  C.  W.  Mossel  was  a  graduate  of  Lincoln 
University.  He  was  a  man  of  healthy  and  robust  appearance, 
with  an  apparently  powerful  physical  organization,  capable  of 
resisting  malarial  diseases  and  the  general  effects  of  tropical  cli- 
mates. His  wife  was  of  medium  size,  with  a  rather  delicate  but 
healthy  constitution,  capable  of  enduring  hardships  and  fatigues 
of  an  ordinary  kind.  She  also  possessed  poetic  and  musical 
sensibilities,  together  with  those  of  a  high  moral  character  that 
gave  her  an  heroic  spirit,  and  fitted  her  for  the  self-denials  and 
privations  of  a  missionary  life.  Elder  Mossel  and  his  wife 
sailed  from  New  York  to  their  missionary  field  on  the  historic 
island  of  Hayti  in  the  spring  of  187(>),  after  a  meeting  in  Sullivan 
Street  A.  M.  E.  Church,  at  which  the  elder  delivered  a  farewell 
address,  as  Brothers  Lynch  and  Hall  had  done  before  him  when 
they,  too,  sailed  from  the  same  port  to  their  field  of  labor  in  the 
South.  These  missionaries  to  Hayti  carried  with  them  a  multi- 
tude of  prayers  that  Jesus  might  go  with  them  to  shield  them 
from  the  dangers  of  the  ocean,  guide  them  safely  to  Port-au- 
Prince,  and  grant  them  great  success  in  their  efforts  to  assist  in 
making  the  Haytians  a  great  nation  by  making  them  truly  and 
earnestly  Christians.  The  prayers  of  the  friends  of  Christian 
missions  were  answered.  They  made  a  safe  passage  across  the 
Atlantic,  and  began  their  labors  at  Port-au-Prince,  the  capital  of 
the  government.  Here,  amid  great  opposition,  Brother  Mossel 
and  his  judicious  wife  succeeded  in  organizing  a  new  mission, 
planting  and  training  a  mission  church,  also  planting  and  train- 
ing a  mission  Sunday-school  and  a  mission  day  school,  in 
which  both  the  French  and  English  languages  in  their  elemen- 
tary forms  were  taught.  Sister  Mossel,  who  was  placed  at  the 
head  of  this  school,  managed  it  with  great  skill,  and  would  have 
succeeded  on  a  large  and  extensive  scale  if  the  missionary  board 
could  have  furnished  them  with  ample  means.  In  addition  to 
the  lack  of  means  to  operate  the  school  on  a  grand  and  com- 
manding scale,  another  obstacle  to  success  arose  in  the  shape  of 
the  civil  war  which  broke  out  on  the  island  and  caused  great 
suffering  on  the  part  of  our  missionaries,  and  doubtless  short- 
ened the  life  of  Sister  Mossel,  who  died  shortly  after  their  return 


480 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


to  the  United  States,  not  long  after  the  General  Conference 
of  1884.  During  her  stay  in  Hayti,  with  all  her  labors  as  a 
missionary,  this  heroic  woman  made  time — we  might  say  stole 
it  from  her  domestic  cares  and  her  work  as  a  teacher  and  princi- 
pal of  the  school  —  to  compose  a  beautiful  march  which  she 
dedicated  to  the  illustrious  President  Salomon,  who  conquered 
his  enemies  in  the  civil  war  previously  mentioned,  and  restored 
peace  and  unity  to  his  country. 

Rev.  (  harks  Mossel  was  succeeded  by  Deacon  S.  G.  Dorce,  B.  D., 
a  graduate  from  the  theological  department  of  Wilberforce 
University.  This  young  man  had  been  sent  from  our  mission 
in  Hayti  by  Brother  Mossel  to  be  trained  for  work  in  Hayti 
Upon  his  return  home.  This  work  he  undertook  after  obtaining 
the  best  training  that  Wilberforce  could  give,  and  which  he  had 
the  capacity  to  receive,  but  being  destitute  of  the  missionary 
spirit,  at  the  end  of  one  year  of  labor,  perhaps  in  less  time  than 
one  year  from  the  day  he  became  the  successor  to  Brother 
Mossel,  lie  returned  to  the  United  States  to  obtain  a  wife  and  re- 
mained in  the  itineracy  of  the  Church  in  this  country.  His  suc- 
cessor was  the  Rev.  John  Hurst,  B.  I).,  also  a  graduate  of  Wilber- 
force  University,  who,  like  Brother  Dorce,  was  sent  from  our 
mission  in  Hayti  by  Elder  Mossel  to  be  trained  for  work 
there.  He  has  fine  talents,  and  is  courteous  and  gentlemanly, 
and  should  be  placed  at  the  head  of  our  mission  day  school, 
where  he  may  have  the  opportunity  to  demonstrate  his  ability 
as  an  educator,  if  the  power  be  in  him.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  he 
may  succeed  as  a  teacher,  and  rise  to  the  eminence  of  an  edu- 
cator, to  which  exalted  plane  comparatively  few  teachers  ever 
ascend. 

In  the  Spanish  part  of  Hayti,  on  the  east  side  of  the  island, 
there  is  another  republic,  in  which  the  Spanish  language  is 
spoken,  as  we  have  seen.  Its  capital  is  San  Domingo,  which 
name  is  also  applied  to  the  whole  island  at  times,  and  then 
again  limited  to  the  Spanish  part.  Some  time  after  the  Ameri- 
can emigrants  had  settled  in  the  French  part  of  the  island,  in 
1824,  a  small  portion  of  them  went  to  the  town  of  Samana,  in 
the  northeast  part  of  San  Domingo.  It  was  from  this  part  that 
the  last  Macedonian  echoes  were  heard.  But  by  indefinite 
information,  received  from  time  to  time  through  the  United 
States  consul  at  San  Domingo,  it  seems  that  we  have  turned  our 
backs  upon  Samana  and  opened  a  new  mission  at  San  Domingo, 


Extension  in  Foreign  Lands, 


l.si 


the  seal  of  government  for  the  Republic  of  "Santo  Domingo." 
So  it  was  left  for  a  local  preacher  in  our  Church,  and  an  officer  of 
the  United  States  government,  to  revive  the  missionary  work  of 
the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  republic*  From 
what  can  be  learned,  this  generous  man  revived  our  mission  at 
his  own  expense.  Being  a  member  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in 
the  United  States,  he  did  not  allow  the  honors  and  dignities 
with  which  he  was  clad  as  an  officer  of  one  of  the  grandest  repub- 
lics on  the  globe  to  make  him  forget  his  allegiance  to  the  Lord  of 
lords  and  King  of  kings.  No,  but  with  the  humility  and  zeal 
of  a  Christian  missionary  to  the  heathen,  he  went  in  search  of 
his  brethren,  whom  he  found  like  unto  smouldering  em  hers. 
He  gathered  them  together,  hired  a  house  for  two  years,  dur- 
ing which  time  he  repaired  and  furnished  the  old  chapel. 
He  also  increased  the  membership,  and  under  his  leadership  a 
good  Sabbath-school  and  a  day  school  were  organized. 

Since  the  accomplishment  of  the  good  work  of  infusing  new 
blood  into  old  veins  at  San  Domingo,  Rev.  Alphonso  H.  Mevs 
has  been  made  the  regular  missionary  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  at 
that  place.  Brother  Mevs  was  also  a  graduate  of  Wilberforce. 
Since  his  advent  another  mission  has  been  opened  at  Barahana. 
The  official  statement  made  in  the  flissionary  Record  for  Novem- 
ber, 1887,  gives  us  the  following  exhibit  of  the  condition  of  our 
mission  work  in  both  republics :  At  that  time  Rev.  A.  H.  Mevs 
and  his  wife  had  been  in  the  country  one  year  and  nine  months. 
This  gave  us  three  workers,  including  Rev.  H.  C.  C.  Astwood  as 
superintendent,  aside  from  the  four  native  helpers,  Franschan 
Clandie,  Simon  Hall,  Charles  Williams  and  Adam  Rogers,  in 
San  Domingo;  while  in  Hayti  there  were  Rev.  John  Hurst,  at 
Port-au-Prince;  Rev.  Joseph  Day,  at  Miragoaine  Circuit;  George 
Cadanehe,  at  Archaie;  Charles  Dorce,  at  Grande  Plaine,  etc.; 
Pauli  Audige,  at  Les  Moines  de  Petion ;  and  Samuel  Day,  at 
Segur  and  Bizoton.  The  statistics  show  that  there  were  in  the 
society  one  deacon,  thirty-eight  members,  one  probationer,  three 
local  preachers,  one  exhorter,  an  average  of  one  hundred  for  the 
congregation,  four  stewards,  two  class-leaders,  five  trustees  and 
one  assistant.  There  were  also  two  clay  schools,  with  three 
teachers — F.  J.  M.  Clandie,  A.  H.  Mevs  and  Adam  Rogers — and 

:;:  Hon.  C.  C.  Astwood,  who  represented  the  United  States  at  San 
Domingo  as  consul  at  that  time. 
31 


482 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


fifty  pupils.  The  branches  taught  in  these  schools  were  simply 
what  we  call  the  common  branches.  The  one  church  was  valued 
at  $2,000.  The  Sunday-schools  were  two.  with  live  teachers. 
The  financial  statement  showed  that  $30.85  were  collected  by  the 
stewards,  $25.51  by  the  trustees,  $2.50  in  the  Sunday-school, 
$50.85  as  the  support  received  from  the  church,  and  $500.00  as 
support  from  the  general  hoard. 

From  the  Mmionary  Record  of  January,  1888,  we  clip  the  fol- 
lowing additional  view  of  our  prospects  in  the  Spanish  part  of 
the  island : 

Brother  Mevs,  the  present  city  missionary,  and  Brother  Adam  Rogers 
have  organized  a  mission  at  Barahana,  as  well  as  a  day  school,  which  are 
giving  promise  of  success.  Our  congregation  in  San  Domingo  City  lias 
outgrown  the  little  chapel,  and  it  becomes  necessary  to  build  a  house  in  a 
suitable  spot.  When  it  is  remembered  that  this  is  the  capital,  the  oldest 
city  in  the  New  World,  and  that  ours  is  the  only  Protestant  Chiirch,  all 
will  agree  that  we  should  erect  such  a  mission  house  as  will  not  only  be  a 
credit  to  the  city,  but  such  a  one  as  will  give  to  the  Connection  itself  pres- 
tige and  influence.  The  people  of  wealth  and  position  have  promised 
Brothers  Astwood  and  Mevs  substantial  aid  when  we  convince  them  thai 
we  intend  to  do  something  worthy  of  their  support.  One  of  the  most 
centrally  located  and  desirable  lots  in  the  city  can  be  had  for  about  one- 
half  its  aimraisiMl  value  for  this  purpose.  One  thousand  dollars  will  pay 
for  the  ground,  and  the  people  will  do  a  large  share  toward  paying  for  the 
building.  We  shall  not  rely  upon  the  few  members  of  the  mission,  for 
officers  of  state,  merchants  and  capitalists  have  alike  agreed  to  do  their 
part  when  we  shall  have  done  ours. 

When  we  consider  the  truth  that  no  race  of  men  can  establish 
and  perpetuate  a  strong  government  upon  political  principles 
which  are  nothing  more  than  an  embodiment  of  human  selfish- 
ness, we  are  led  to  the  opinion  that  to  make  a  government  strong 
and  stable,  and  the  nation  it  represents  powerful  and  truly  great, 
and  to  perpetuate  its  power  and  greatness,  the  divine  approba- 
tion, shield  and  blessing  must  be  obtained  and  secured.  But 
the  divine  approbation,  shield  and  blessing  can  be  secured  only 
by  conformity  to  the  divine  will  as  it  is  expressed  in  the  Deca- 
logue and  the  Beatitudes.  In  view  of  which  we  believe  it  is  a 
dictate  of  Christian  wisdom  and  benevolence  that  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  ought  to  concentrate  her  moneys 
and  men  upon  Hayti  until  her  missions  shall  he  developed  into 
a  separate  and  independent  ecclesiastical  body  like  that  Liiven  to 
Sierra  Leone  by  the  Church  of  England,  or  that  given  to  the 


Extension  vn  Foreign  Lands. 


Cape  of  Good  Hope  by  the  British  Wcsleyan  Methodist  Church. 
Add  to  these  high  considerations  the  heroism,  the  patriotism 
and  statesmanship  of  Toussaint  L'Ouverture  and  Dessalines,  of 
Petion  and  Boyer,  and  the  tens  of  thousands  who  fought  and 
died  to  establish  a  black  nationality  in  the  Western  Hemisphere, 
and  thus  dedieate  that  island  to  human  freedom.  It  seems 
well  to  emphasize  the  belief  thai  il  ie  the  paramount  duty  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  to  consecrate  her  energies  upon  thai  spol  till  its 
two-fold  republic  shall  have  attained  a  strong  Christian  charac- 
ter, and  by  the  very  force  of  that  character  shall  be  able  to  leap 
upon  a  commanding  position  among  the  civilized  nations  of  the 
earth.  Two  thousand  dollars  spent  per  annum  upon  the  British 
Wesl  Indies  is  a  work  of  supererogation,  because  the  powerful 
and  wealthy  churches  of  England  have  been  civilizing  and 
Christianizing  her  subjects  for  more  than  half  a  century.  Its 
inhabitants  are  not  heathen.  No;  they  are  Christians.  They 
are  not  a  semi-barbarous  people.  They  are  a  highly  civilized 
people.  Why  waste  our  time  and  money  when  distracted,  needy 
Haytj  is  calling  upon  us  for  aid?  Said  our  Lord  Jesus:  "l  am 
not  come  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinners  to  repentance."  The 
semi-heathen  and  the  absolute  savage  are  calling  for  us  in  Hayti 
and  in  Africa  to  lead  them  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  Christ  Jesus.  We  shall  show  both  Christian  benevolence  and 
Christian  common  sense  by  following  the  example  of  Jesus;  for 
that  example  is  typical  for  all  times  and  all  races.  The  semi- 
heathen  in  Ilayti,  the  barbarians  and  savages  of  Africa  are  call- 
ing upon  all  Christendom  to  rescue  them  from  the  pit  of  idol- 
atry into  which  they  have  fallen,  and  from  the  vices  and  crimes 
concomitant  to  it.-  various  forms.  Instead  of  spending  two 
thousand  dollars  per  annum  on  an  episcopal  failure  in  the  name 
of  the  "Organic  Union,"  let  us  spend  that  sum  on  one  of  the 
schools  in  the  French  part,  and  a  like  amount  on  one  in  the 
Spanish  part  of  that  island  which  has  been  rendered  sacred  to 
every  man  and  to  every  woman,  to  ever}'  boy  and  girl,  in  whose 
veins  are  flowing  one  drop  or  more  of  Hamitic  blood — if  there 
be  such  a  thing  as  Hamitic  blood,  distinct  from  and  opposed  to 
Shemitic  and  Japhetic  blood;  for  the  Lord  our  Cod  "made  of 
one  blood  all  nations  of  men  for  to  dwell  on  all  the  face  of  the 
earth." 

But  we  now  turn  to  our  work  in  Africa,  of  which  a  brief  notice 
has  been  given  elsewhere,  relating  to  the  past  as  it  existed  and 


484 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


still  exists  in  Africa;  that  is,  in  Liberia.  To  this  place  several 
of  our  preachers  went  from  time  to  time,  pledged  to  organize  a 
branch  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Liberia;  but,  for  lack  of  sup- 
port, connected  themselves  with  missions  belonging  to  the  dif- 
ferent white  denominations  of  the  United  States.  Daniel  Coker, 
one  of  the  original  founders  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  was  one 
of  the  first  to  attempt  it:  but  obtaining  no  support  from 
that  Church  which  he  helped  to  organize,  lie  left  Liberia  and 
settled  in  Sierra  Leone  where  tradition  says  Ik-  built  a  stone 
edifice,  in  which  he  labored  till  his  career  on  earth  was 
finished. 

We  come  now  to  examine  and  consider  what  is  called  "Our 
Work  in  Sierra  Leone,  Africa.*1  This  British  colony  was  origi- 
nally founded  as  an  asylum  for  Africans  who  had  been  bought 
for  rum  and  money,  or  captured  by  violence,  by  white  slave; 
traders.  The  slave  ships  in  which  they  were  imprisoned  were 
caught  on  tjie  high  seas  by  British  cruisers,  and  they  were 
restored  to  their  natural  and  heaven-given  freedom.  It  was 
here  in  Sierra  Leone  that  the  "Church  Missionary  Society"  com- 
menced its  work  for  the  enlightenment  and  salvation  of  Africa. 
This  occurred  in  1816,  the  very  year  that  produced  the  founding 
of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
U.  S.  A.  The  systematic  efforts  of  the  first  missionaries  of  this 
society,  led  by  Rev.  YV.  A.  B.  Johnson,  were  greatly  blessed  by 
the  Great  God  of  Missions,  so  that,  within  the  short  period  of 
six  years,  "  nearly  two  thousand  of  the  freed  slaves,  adults  and 
children,  were  in  the  mission  schools,  several  thousand  were 
attending  public  worship,  and  some  hundreds  had  become  Chris- 
tians." The  work  continued  to  prosper,  but  at  a  great  sacrifice  of 
life.  Within  twenty  years  "fifty-three  missionaries  and  their 
wives  died  and  consecrated  West  Africa  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

In  1851  the  Bishopric  of  Sierra  Leone  was  founded,  and  the 
first  three  Bishops — Vidal,  Weeks  and  Bowen — died  within  three 
years  of  their  consecration.  Within  forty-six  year-  "the  native 
church  was  organized  on  an  independent  basis,  and  undertook 
the  support  of  their  own  pastors,  churches  and  schools,  aided  by 
a  small  grant  from  the  Society.  It  now  also  carries  on  the  out- 
lying mis-ions  established  by  the  Society  in  the  Bullum,  Quia 
and  Sherbro  counties."  The  Christian  population  of  the  country, 
according  to  the  census  of  1881,  is  thirty-nine  thousand,  of  whom 
one-half  is  accorded  to  the  Church  of  England. 


Extension  in  Foreign  Lands. 


is:, 


The  Society  still  retains  the  charge  of  the  Fouruh  Bay  College, 
the  grammar  school  and  the  female  institute,  and  lias  an  outly- 
ing mission  at  Port  Lohkoh,  on  the  high  road  to  the  interior, 
with  a  view  to  reaching  the  Mohammedan  tribes.  The  Fouruh 
Bay  College  is  affiliated  to  the  Durham  University,  and  African 
students  have  taken  the  degree  of  A.  B.  and  the  theological 
license  with  credit.  Other  young  Africans,  sons  of  Sierra  Leone 
clergymen  and  merchants,  are  graduates  of  Oxford  and  Cam- 
bridge. "There  arc  now  about  fifty  ordained  African  clergymen 
on  the  west  coast  (including  Voruba  and  the  Niger).  Four  of 
these  are  governmenl  chaplains."  The  societies'  missionaries 
"have  reduced  to  writing  several  of  the  West  African  languages, 
and  have  published  grammars,  vocabularies,  portions  of  the 
Scriptures  and  other  works.1'  One  missionary,  Dr.  Koelle,  com- 
piled an  important  work  called  "  Polyglotta  Africana,"  compris- 
ing more  than  one  hundred  languages.  The  Bishop  of  Sierra 
Leone,  Dr.  E.  O.  Ingham,  appointed  in  1887  the*  Rev.  James 
Robbins,  a  native  pastor  of  Holy  Trinity,  Freetown,  first  Arch- 
deacon of  Sierra  Leone.  "The  native  church  willingly  under- 
took the  entire;  pecuniary  burden  of  this  appointment."  A 
branch  of  the  Church  of  England  Temperance  Society  and  a 
Purity  Society  have  been  established  at  Sierra  Leone  "to  meet 
and  deal  effectively  with  the  two  greatest  sins  of  Africa.  The 
Purity  Society  is  an  association  of  Christian  men  and  women 
organized  against  the  sin  and  practice  of  adultery,  which  has 
done  much  in  London  to  rescue  abandoned  women  from  the 
power  of  the  Evil  One. 

The  British  ^Vresleyan  Methodist  Church  have  also  many  mis- 
sions in  the  West  of  Africa.  They  are  next  in  numbers  and 
moral  influence  to  the  missions  of  the  Church  of  England,  and 
perhaps  have  more  real  converts  from  among  the  heathen.  They 
have  also  numerous  Sunday-schools  and  day  schools  in  Sierra 
Leone. 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  foregoing  that  the  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  has  not  sent  the  Rev.  J.  R.  Frederick  into  the 
wilds  of  Africa  to  originate  a  new  missionary  work,  but  he  has 
been  sent  into  a  field  which  has  been  in  existence  for  a  time  cov- 
ering about  seventy-two  years;  so  we  are  now  building,  in  the 
case  of  Zion's  Chapel,  upon  other  men's  foundations.  It  is  now 
our  purpose  to  show  what  is  not  and  what  is  original  of  our 
work  in  West  Africa.    The  analysis  of  the  "Conveyance  of  Mis- 


486 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sion  Property  in  Freetown,  Africa,"  under* date  of  June  3d,  1887, 
brings  to  our  view  for  consideration  several  historic  facts  occur- 
ring during  a  period  of  fifty-three  years.    They  are  these  : 

"The  lots  No.  46  and  47,  situated  in  Wilberforce  street,  Free- 
town, Africa,  being  the  respective  sites  of  Zion  Chapel  and  the 
school  building  adjacent  thereto,1'  became  the  property  of  twelve 
trustees  representing  a  religious  body  which  had  cut  itself  off 
from  all  its  environments,  by  which  is  meant  from  all  the  Chris- 
tian missions  then  in  existence,  and  made  itself  independent  of 
all.  The  members  of  this  Zion  Chapel  placed  themselves  under 
the  "Rules,  Regdlations  and  Discipline"  of  the  preachers  of  said 
Zion  Chapel.  They,  the  trustees,  were  bound  to  permit,  suffer 
and  allow  and  receive  such  preachers  as  might  be  appointed  to 
the  pastoral  office,  according  to  the  Rules,  Regulations  and  Disci- 
pline which  the  preachers  and  leaders  of  the  said  Zion  Chapel 
might  be  pleased  to  adopt,  subject  to  the  proviso  that  the  person 
or  persons  so  appointed  should  preach  no  other  doctrines  than 
those  contained  in  the  Scriptures,  and  that  he  should  possess 
"sufficient  ability  and  moral  conduct."  Vacancies  occurring  in 
the  board  of  trustees  could  be  filled  by  any  one  who  might  be  a 
member  of  some  religious  body  in  Sierra  Leone.  This  extraordi- 
nary board  of  trustees,  representing  Zion  Chapel  and  the  religious 
societv  worshipping  in  it,  came  into  existence  as  far  back  as  1835, 
and  at  the  end  of  about  thirty-five  years,  that  is,  at  the  end  of 
one  generation,  all  of  these  twelve  trustees  had  died  except  Isaac 
Barnett,  who  lived  until  December,  1870,  leaving  no  will  behind 
him.  Then  Zion  Chapel  and  its  out-buildings  fell  into  the  hands 
of  his  lawful  heir,  a  daughter,  Mrs.  Mary  Ann  Wilson.  This 
daughter  and  her  husband,  Ezekiel  Cartwright  Wilson,  trans- 
ferred, on  the  22d  of  May,  1878,  the  said  Zion  Chapel  and  its  her- 
editaments (the  school-house,  etc.)  to  a  new  board  of  trustees  of 
twelve  men.  These  trustees  were  endowed  with  the  same  power 
and  authority  as  the  trustees  of  1835,  but  in  time  this  second 
board  was  by  expulsion  and  death  reduced  to  the  number  of 
four.  From  the  hands  of  these  four  Zion  Chapel,  with  its  her- 
editaments, was  conveyed  over  to  a  new  board  of  trustees,  again 
consisting  of  twelve  men,  representing  the  Lady  Huntingdon's 
Society.  This  conveyance  was  made  in  1862,  and  the  new  board 
received  the  property  upon  "trust  forever  for  the  use  and  benefit 
of  the  said  society."  Again  this  board  was  reduced  by  death  to 
two  members,  but  it  seems  that  these  two  increased  their  num- 


Extension  in  Foreign  Lands. 


487 


ber  to  six.  These  six  were  the  ones  who,  on  the  30th  of  June, 
1885,  " made  proposals  in  the  form  of  an  appeal  t<>  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  the  United  States  of  America 
for  bringing  about  a  union  or  amalgamation  of  the  said  members, 
leaders  and  preachers  of  said  Zion  Chapel  of  the  Countess  Hunt- 
ingdon's Connection,  as  aforesaid,  and  the  said  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church."  Arrangements  having  been  made  by  Bishop 
Shorter,  Secretary  Townsend,  Bishop  Campbell,  Dr.  Roberts  and 
Prof.  Outjand,  Executive  Committee  of  the  Board  of  Managers 
of  the  Parent  Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society,  to  consum- 
mate the  proposed  union  or  amalgamation,  Rev.  -John  Richard 
Frederick  was  sent  out  by  the  committee  as  their  agent  to  accom- 
plish the  work.  We  shall  soon  see  the  result  of  Brother  Fred- 
rick's mission;  hut  firsl  we  may  note  an  analysis  of  the"Con- 
yeyance  of  the  Mission  Property  in  Freetown,  Africa,"  as  that 
conveyance  is  set  before  the  Church: 

First.  It  is  evident  that  Zion  Chapel  and  its  membership, 
trustees,  preachers  and  leaders,  originated  with  disaffected  mem- 
bers of  other  missionary  churches  existing  in  Sierra  Leone  previ- 
ous to  the  27th  of  January,  1835.  Second.  That,  being  dissatis- 
fied with  their  environments,  they  organized  a  society  which 
they  considered  a  model  one,  better  than  all  others,  and  formu- 
lated a  Discipline  and  organized  a  government  better,  or  at  least 
more  to  their  taste,  than  all  others  surrounding  them.  Third. 
This  ecclesia  was  governed  chiefly,  if  not  entirely,  by  a  board  of 
twelve  trustees,  the  apostolic  number,  the  reason  for  their  assum- 
ing which  not  appearing,  at  least  upon  the  surface.  It  may  be 
supposed  that,  like  the  divinely  inspired  twelve,  they  could 
conquer  the  world.  If  so,  the  result  shows  that  they  were  led 
Car  astray  in  their  opinions.  Fourth.  They  and  their  successors 
staggered  under  the  burdens,  and  met  difficulties  which  they 
could  not  overcome,  and  the  last  twelve,  seeing  that  they  could 
not  stand  alone  any  longer,  threw  themselves  into  Lady  Hunt- 
ingdon's Society,  to  remain  with  it  "forever."  What  vicissitudes 
they  passed  through  in  this  form  and  in  this  Connection  are  hidden 
from  our  gaze,  but  as  trustees  of  Lady  Huntingdon's  Connection 
they  came  with  proposals  to  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  This  proposal 
held  two  elements  as  its  constituent  parts — union  or  amalgama- 
tion. The  agents  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  the  executive  com- 
mittee, did  not  consent  to  the  first,  but  to  the  second.  They 
may  have  believed  that  we  have  enough  of  "organic"  or  any 


488 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church, 


other  kind  of  union  with  foreign  religious  bodies,  and  accepted 
"amalgamation,"  which  differs  widely  from  '-union,"  especially 
" organic  union."  Let  us  mark  the  difference.  Organic  union 
chains  two  independent  bodies  together  and  allows  them  to  sep- 
arate again  whenever  the  conditions,  in  part  or  in  whole,  are  not 
faithfully  fulfilled,  or  become  violated  by  either  party.  But 
amalgamation  is  a  great  thing  absorbing  a  little  one,  as  a  shark 
swallows  down  a  mullet,  or  a  mackerel,  or  a  shad.  And  yet  the 
shark  may  be  compelled  to  eject  the  mullet  and  the  mackerel 
and  the  shad. 

Why  the  trustees  of  the  Lady  Huntingdon  Connection  looked 
all  the  way  across  the  Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  African  M.  E. 
Church,  and  call  on  her  for  "  union  or  amalgamation,''  when  there 
were  such  rich  and  effective  denominations  around  them  in  Sierra 
Leone,  is  yet  to  be  ascertained.  It  is  not  apparent,  unless  the 
board  which  made  the  appeal  inherits  the  antipathies  of  the 
original  twelve. 

The  report  which  Brother  Frederick  sent  us  shows  that  he 
had  done  everything  possible  to  make  the  conveyance  of  Zion 
Chapel,  its  school-house,  and  other  hereditaments,  secure  to  the 
African  M.  E.  Church  in  the  United  States.  This  transfer  was 
well  considered,  first,  by  two  public  or  general  meetings  held  on 
the  12th  of  January.  1887,  and  on  the  18th  day  of  March,  1887, 
in  which  it  was,  by  formal  resolution,  proposed  to  change  the 
name,  title  or  designation  "Zion  Chapel,"  and  call  it  "The  Zion 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church."  We  say  that  this  change 
of  name  and  title  was  considered  by  a  general  meeting  of  the 
whole  of  the  mem  I  ters,  leaders  and  preachers  held  on  the  12th  of 
January,  1887,  and  more  than  two  months  afterward,  on  the  18th 
day  of  March,  1887,  it  was  again  considered  and  ratified  by  a 
unanimous  vote,  and  subsequently  duly  transcribed  and  attested 
in  the  records  of  books  of  said  Zion  Chapel.  For  this  careful 
transaction  Brother  Frederick  deserves  our  approbation  and 
sincere  thanks.  We  are  to  rejoice  at  this  acquisition,  not  as 
a  victorious  general  rejoices  over  a  territory  which  he  has  con- 
quered through  the  loyalty  and  prowess  of  well-trained  soldiers, 
but  as  a  man  rejoices  when  he  has  received  as  a  gift  a  valuable 
piece  of  property  from  the  hand  of  a  generous  neighbor.  Let  us 
never  disappoint  the  expectation  of  the  donors.  Let  us  give 
them  a  good  school  and  good  teachers,  and  let  us  train  their 
children  as  children  ought  to  be  trained,  in  the  Sunday-school 


Extension  in  Foreign  Lands. 


and  in  the  day  school.  Let  the  pastors  we  put  Into  the  pulpit  <>f 
Zion  A.  M.  E.  Church  in  Sierra  I, cone,  West  Africa,  be  spotless, 
well-trained,  steady,  shining  stars,  held  in  the  Saviour's  hand — 
star-shining  in  his  light  and  glowing  in  his  luster. 

Let  us  now  call  attention  to  a  different  gift,  which  may  he  de- 
nominated "the  Virgin  Gift."  It  is  a  conveyance  of  land  to  the 
board  of  missions  of  tin-  A.  M.  E.  Church,  ( '.  S.  A.  Pastor  John 
Richard  Frederick  reports  that  the  king  of  the  Small  Sea  ivies 
River,  and  several  chiefs,  have  invited  the  African  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  to  establish  a  mission  church  and  school  within 
their  boundaries,  and  have  also  given  by  deed  ten  acres  of  hind 
for  that  purpose.  These  ten  acres  are  in  the  tow  n  of  Ro  Manga, 
on  the  Small  Scarcies  River.  They  seem  to  he  well  watered  by 
two  brooks  as  well  as  by  the  river.  This  property  was  secured  to 
the  missionary  hoard  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  by  a  deed  on  the 
'_!<;tli  of  November,  1887.  It  may  he  called  the  "Virgin  (lift/' 
because  no  mission  house  or  school  was  on  it  at  the  time  it  was 
deeded,  and  as  yet  it  does  not  appear  that  any  attempt  has  ever 
been  made  to  utilize  it  for  mission  purposes. 

Pastor  Frederick  has  reported  through  the  missionary  record 
that  he  has  sent  a  missionary  by  the  name  of  Moses  I).  Davies 
to  commence  Our  mission  at  Ro  Manga,  and  has  also  given  him 
particular  instructions  as  to  his  conduct  and  methods.  These 
i nst ructions,  too  important  and  historic  to  he  mutilated  by 
abridgment,  are  here  given  entire: 

The  Lord  has  been  pleased  to  open  for  us  the  way  for  the  extension  of 
mission  work  in  the  direction  of  Small  Scarcies  River.  We  have  accepted 
the  call,  and  are  now  ready  to  show  our  obedience  by  undertaking  the 
work  on  the  strength  he  has  faithfully  promised  to  bestow.  By  virtue  of 
the  authority  vested  in  me  as  the  representative  of  the  mission  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  at  Sierra  Leone  and  Liberia,  on  the  west  coast  of  Africa, 
I  herewith  appoint  you  as  a  missionary,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the 
Parent  Home  and  Foreign  Missionary  Society  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  to 
enter  upon  this  most  important  work,  fully  believing  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
lias  directed  us,  and  that  by  the  aid  of  this  same  spirit  you  will  be  instru- 
mental in  the  hand  of  the  God  of  Missions  in  accomplishing  much  good  in 
that  dark  corner  among  heathens  and  Mohammedans,  who  are  waiting  to 
receive*  the  message  of  pardon  and  peace  through  Christ,  our  Saviour.  We 
solemnly  feel  the  importance  of  our  position  in  engaging  and  sending  you 
to  labor  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  but  we  believe  in  him  who  has  said> 
"  Go  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature." 

You  are  appointed  as  a  schoolmaster  and  exhorter,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  render  any  and  every  service  necessary  to  the  advancement  of  the  mis- 


490 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


sions.  If  you  are  to  be  a  blessing  to  the  people  on  the  Small  Scarcies 
River,  and  labor  to  be  successful,  it  will  be  your  duty  to  cultivate  very  ex- 
tensively the  language  of  the  people.  You  are  aware  that  there  are  mixed 
tribes  to  be  found  in  that  part  of  the  country — Timneh,  Susu  and  others — 
yet  the  Timneh  is  the  commonly  spoken  language  of  the  people.  We 
would,  therefore,  strongly  advise  you  to  enter  at  once  upon  the  study  of  the 
language,  and  hope  that  ere  long  you  will  be  able  to  speak  in  their  own 
tongue  the  wonderful  works  of  God.  At  present  there  is  a  great  barrier 
between  you  and  them,  which  will,  in  a  measure,  be  removed  by  an 
acquaintance  with  the  language.  You  cannot  win  people's  hearts  so  well 
as  to  get  at  their  ears.  "Faith  cometh  by  hearing."  Study  the  people  as 
well.  Get  into  their  minds  by  throwing  yourself  into  connection  witli 
them.  Let  them  feel  that  you  love  them,  if  you  are  to  gain  their  confi- 
dence and  bring  them  to  Christ.  Never  forget  that  while  you  are  studying 
them  they  are  studying  you,  too.  They  are  going  to  try  to  find  out  your 
motive  in  coming  to  them.  Your  life  will  soon  tell.  You  must  live  down 
mistaken  notions.  Let  the  people  see  the  image  of  Christ  reflected  in  your 
life  and  conversation.  You  are  sent  out  as  a  missionary,  and  not  as  a  leader, 
to  seek  for  souls,  not  for  your  own  interest.  Let  them  see  that  you  have 
forsaken  home  and  all  earthly  prospects  for  Christ's  sake  and  the  gospel. 
Do  all  for  the  gospel's  sake. 

You  will  be  stationed  at  Ro  Manga,  but  you  are  expected  to  itinerate 
through  the  country  as  often  as  opportunities  ofler.  Wherever  you  go,  sow 
theseed.  <>ne  very  important  object  we  would  wish  you  to  keep  always 
before  you,  and  to  be  instilled  into  the  minds  of  the  natives,  is  a  spirit  of 
independence.  We  entreat,  and  actually  beg  you,  to  instruct  and  train  the 
people  to  the  principle  of  self-support.  This  is  one  of  the  great  aims  of 
the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  to  which  you  are  connected.  We  believe  the  weak- 
ness and  failures  of  many  of  our  Christian  missions  are  largely  to  be  at- 
tributed to  a  lack  of  discipline  in  this  direction.  Do  all  you  can  to  incul- 
cate a  spirit  of  self-support. 

You  have  no  authority  to  introduce  any  foreign  rites  or  ceremonies. 
Don't  let  the  people  think  that  our  religion  is  cumbersome.  Plain  reading 
and  expounding  God's  word  with  singing  and  prayer  is  what  we  would 
recommend.  Avoid  everything  like  interference  with  their  long-established 
customs.  We  strongly  emphasize  the  importance  of  nationalizing  converts 
to  Christianity.  Beware  of  the  Sierra  Leone  traders  you  meet  with  on  the 
river. 

And  now,  if  you  w  ill  be  happy  and  prosperous  in  your  work,  remember 
that  you  are  not  your  own- "you  are  bought  with  a  price."  "Be  the 
servant  of  the  Lord,"  not  with  eye  service  as  men-pleasers,  but  with  single- 
ness of  heart  as  unto  the  Lord.  u  Xo  man  can  serve  two  masters."  "  Seek 
first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness,  and  all  other  things 
shall  be  added  unto  you."  Let  God  be  foremost  in  all  you  do.  "  Not 
slothful  in  business,  fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord."  Remember,  "the 
servant  of  the  Lord  must  not  strive,  but  be  patient  towards  all  men,  apt  to 
teach,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre."    Be  watchful.    "Continue  instant  in 


Extension  in  Foreign  Land*. 


1<)1 


prayer."  Finally,  "whatsoever  things  are  line,  whatsoever  things  are 
honest,  whatsoever  thiqgs  are  just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever 
things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of  good  report,  ii  there  he  any 

virtue,  and  if  there  he  any  praise,  t  h  i  n  k  i  >n  these  things,"  and  the  God  of 
peace  shall  he  with  you.    Anien.  J.  R.  FREDERICK. 

No  one  can  read  the  instructions  given  by  Brother  Frederick 
to  his  subordinate  without  yielding  an  unqualified  approval. 
Bui  will  he  be  competent  to  make  good  the  pledge  given  to  the 
king  and  his  chiefs,  of  the  Small  Scarcies  river  in  Africa?  There 
are  two  answers  to  this  question: 

(a.)  [f  the  missionary  board  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  will 
furnish  the  competent  men  and  the  needed  money,  Brother 
Frederick  will  be  able  to  redeem  his  pledge. 

(6.)  [f  the  board  will  not — or  cannot — furnish  the  men  and 
the  money  needed,  he  will  fail. 

But  the  missionary  hoard  will  not  be  able  to  supply  the  men 
and  the  money  if  the  Connection  will  not  put  the  power  into 
their  treasury.  In  these  two  properties,  given  to  us  without 
money  and  without  price,  the  solemn  voice  of  the  God  of 
Christian  missions  may  be  heard  calling  upon  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  to  labor  in  heathen  lands,  as  he  called  Abraham  to  wan- 
der among  the  heathen  Canaanites.  The  God  of  missions  is 
about  to  test  us  as  he  tested  faithful  Abraham  when  he  com- 
manded him  to  sacrifice  his  only  son,  Isaac.  Shall  we,  will  we 
heed  him  as  did  the  obedient  patriarch  ?  Perhaps,  it  may  he, 
that  our  money  is  our  Isaac.  Will  we  give  it  up?  Not  cents, 
but  dollars;  not  a  hundred  dollars,  but  thousands,  tens  of 
thousands  shall  be  needed  for  our  work  in  Hayti  and  Africa. 
Not  spasmodically  or  annually,  as  some  of  our  preachers  get  up 
protracted  meetings  and  excursions;  but  daily,  weekly,  monthly, 
quarterly — as  regularly  as  the  sun  rises  and  sets,  as  the  moon 
comes  and  goes,  as  the  year  begins  and  ends.  And  here  a 
solemn  warning  may  be  given,  not  to  go  and  waste  time  and 
money  upon  Christian  countries  like  Canada  and  the  British 
West  Indies.  These  countries  do  not  need  the  men  nor  the 
money  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  Great  Britain  has  been  supply- 
ing their  intellectual,  moral  and  spiritual  wants  for  more  than 
one  hundred  years.  She  is  not  bankrupt.  She  is  still  able  to 
supply  the  wants  of  all  her  people  and  subjects  in  Canada  and 
the  West  Indies.  But  the  half  civilized  people  of  Hayti  and  the 
heathen  of  Africa  call  aloud  for  help.    Do  not  go  into  Christian 


492 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


communities  to  split  their  churches  in  the  name  of  "organic 
union."  Do  not  attempt  to  crush  out  the  protesting  party  in 
the  name  of  "organic  union."  Do  not  imperiously  tell  them 
they  do  not  exist  when  the  lawful  civil  authority  acknowledges 
and  defends  their  existence,  and  thousands  of  witnesses  attest 
their  existence.  That  is  ecclesiastical  imperialism.  It  is  reli- 
gious Caesarism.  Ecclesiastical  imperialism — religious  Caesarism 
is  not  the  work  of  Christ — it  is  the  work  of  Satan.  But  this 
is  the  work  of  Christ:  From  our  army  of  four  hundred  thou- 
sand let  us  send  a  detachment  of  well  trained  troops,  armed 
from  head  to  foot — let  them  go  and  unfurl  the  blood-stained 
banner  of  the  Cross  upon  the  dark  continent.  Let  them  never 
call  a  halt  till  they  have  constructed  a  stronghold  in  the  very 
heart  of  Africa.  This  will  be  doing  something  worthy  of  being 
called  a  great  Church.  The  man  who  performs  great  deeds,  and 
lie  only,  is  to  be  called  great  in  the  sight  of  God  and  holy  angels- 
So,  also,  the  Church  that  performs  great  deeds,  and  she  only,  is 
worthy  of  being  called  a  great  Church..  There  is  nothing  great 
in  building  upon  other  men's  foundations;  let  us  go  and  dig  out 
out-  own  trenches  with  our  own  workmen;  let  us  lay  our  own 
foundations  in  our  own  deep  trenches,  and  upon  them  erect  in 
Hayti  and  Africa  temples  dedicated  to  the  worship  of  the 
Almighty  Creator  of  heaven  and  earth.  Then,  alongside  of 
them,  let  us  build  school-houses  consecrated  to  our  Lord  and 
Master  Jesus  Christ,  and  teach  therein  the  Word  of  God  in  the 
languages  which  the  heathen  speak,  by  which  we  can  turn  them 
from  the  power  of  sin  and  Satan  unto  God.  No  amount  of  time 
and  money  spent  in  such  work  can  be  wasted.  No  amount  of 
million-  spent  in  support  of  missionaries  who  can  teach  and 
preach  in  the  heathen  languages  can  be  a  work  of  supererogation. 
May  the  Saviour  of  the  world  stimulate  us  to  such  a  glorious  en- 
terprise, and  lead  us  onward  in  such  a  gospel  movement. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 


THE  CONNECTIONAL  SUNDAY-SCHOOL  UNION. 

A  Grand  Enterprise — The  Man  for  the  Work — Rev  Dr.  C.  S. Smith  His 
Proposition — Organization  of  the  Sunday-School  Dni  on— Removal  from 
Bloomington,  III.,  to  Nashville,  Tenn. —  Financial  Management  Supply 
of  Sunday-School  Literature— The  New  Publishing  House  The  Sunday- 
School  Union  and  its  Future — Road  to  Success  for  all  Depart  incuts 
Closing  Reflections. 

NEXT  to  the  founding  of  our  higher  schools  of  learning, 
perhaps,  the  Connect ional  Sunday-School  Union  is  the 
grandest  enterprise  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  God  always 
makes  a  man  with  peculiar  qualifications  for  particular  work. 
Thus,  as  the  leader  of  this  enterprise,  he  made  Rev.  Charles  S. 
Smith,  1).  1).  It  was  at  the  celebration  of  the  thirtieth  anni- 
versary of  the  present  senior  episcopate  in  the  city  of  New  York 
where  Secretary  Smith  made  his  first  impression  upon  the  mem- 
bers and  friends  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church.  The  day  after  the  cel- 
ebration the  Bishops  held  an  extra  council  in  the  pastor's  study 
of  Sullivan  Street  A.  M.  E.  Church.  Just  as  they  wo  e  about 
to  close  their  deliberations,  Elder  C.  S.  Smith  obtained  permis- 
sion to  interview  the  Bishops.  It  was  then  and  there  he  read 
a  paper  which  outlined  the  Sunday-school  system  he  desired  as 
to  adopt.  Seeing  that  they  could  not  adopt  such  a  paper  w  ith- 
out discussion  and  disputation,  the  senior  Bishop  suggested  that 
inasmuch  as  they  had  not  time  then  for  debate,  the  author  of  the 
document  be  requested  to  be  with  them  at  their  annual  meeting 
to  be  held  that  year  at  Cape  May.  So  at  Cape  May,  N.  J.,  Elder 
C.  S.  Smith  met  the  Bishops'  Council.  There  the  merits  of  the 
document  were  fully  discussed  and  debated,  after  which,  it  was 
unreservedly  adopted  by  the  majority  of  the  Bishops,  who  ordered 
the  organization  of  the  board  of  managers,  to  be  effected  in  No- 
vember, 1882.  They  also  ordered  that  the  organization  should 
take  place  at  Norfolk,  Va. 

At  the  time  and  place  appointed  the  following  brethren  were 
present:  Bishops  Brown,  Campbell  and  Payne;  Elders  Levi  J. 
Coppin,  John  W.  Beckett  and  Horace  Talbert.  The  constitution 
was  read,  and  the  board  of  managers  organized,  but  not  w  ithout 

(  493  ) 


494 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


a  fierce  and  determined  opposition  from  one  of  the  Bishops. 
From  this  meeting  Secretary  Smith  went  forward  encouraged,  but 
not  perfectly  free  from  the  fear  that  he  would  be  opposed  in  many 
directions.  In  the  midst  of  his  fears  he  visited  the  Annual  Con- 
ferences to  solicit  their  co-operation.  This  was  cordially  given 
by  the  sagacious  leaders  of  every  Annual  Conference  up  to  the 
meeting  of  the  General  Conference  of  1884.  There  his  plans 
were  examined,  the  constitution  carefully  considered,  discussed, 
and  once  more  approved  by  the  supreme  authority  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  From  this  unqualified  endorsement  of  the  General 
Conference  one  might  have  supposed  that  he  would  meet  no 
further  opposition. 

Secretary  Smith  commenced  his  operations  at  his  own  home. 
A  prudent  economy  dictated  this  act;  but  his  experience  soon 
led  him  to  the  belief  that  Bloomington,  Illinois,  was  not  the  best 
place  for  his  operations,  because  it  was* not  a  central  point.  There- 
fore, on  the  first  of  January,  1886,  he  moved  his  oflice  to  Nash- 
ville, Tenn.  Perhaps  he  could  not  have  made  a  better  location, 
as  subsequent  events  have  proven.  From  that  elevated  plateau, 
as  from  a,  mountain  summit,  he  was  enabled  to  survey  the  held 
in  which  Providence  has  called  him  to  operate,  and  formulate 
and  execute  his  plans  of  usefulness.  As  the  leader  of  our  Sun- 
day-school movements  he  has  exhibited  skill  in  more  than  one 
direction  : 

(a.)  In  preparing  and  getting  up  our  Sunday-school  requisites, 
and  also  in  managing  our  finances. 

(b.)  The  man  who  cannot  make  his  own  capital  is  one  who 
could  not  keep  and  increase  a  capital  if  it  were  given  to  him. 

Secretary  Smith  received  no  capital  from  the  Church,  because 
it  was  too  poor  to  give  one  to  him.  But  he  made  a  capital  for  the 
Sunday-School  Union.  A  most  favorable  notice  has  been  taken 
of  his  work  by  one  of  the  leading  journals  of  Nashville,  which 
we  now  lay  before  our  readers: 

The  purpose  was  to  systematise  the  Sunday-school  work  among  the  col- 
ored people,  to  provide  them  with  a  literature  and  text-books,  to  extend 
the  work  of  the  Sunday-schools  by  the  organization  of  new  schools,  to 
provide  for  Sunday-school  institutes,  and  to  aid  improvident  schools  by 
distributing  the  issues  of  the  concern  among  them  free  of  charge.  Mr. 
Smith  was  made  corresponding  secretary  at  the  General  Conference  of  1884, 
and  was  told  to  go  ahead.  He  returned  to  his  station  at  that  time  in  Bloom- 
ington, Ilk,  and  began  the  work  in  earnest,  fully  convinced  by  this  time  that 
he  was  engaged  in  a  useful  undertaking.   His  first  step  was  to  establish  an 


The  Conncctional  Sunday-School  Union. 


annual  children's  day  throughout  the  Church  for  a  general  collection  in 
behalf  of  the  work.  Then  he  began  the  process  of  foundings  literature. 
At  this  time  the  colored  Methodist  Church  had  but  two  Sunday-school 
publications  in  the  entire  country,  a  Child'*  Recorder  and  a  8und ay 'School 
Catechism,  published  in  Philadelphia. 

Developments  soon  proved  that  Bloomington  was  not  centrally  enough 
located,  and  that  the  necessary  assistance  needed  was  nol  there.  Mr. 
Smith  had  lived  a  short  period  in  Nashville,  and  was  acquainted  with 
its  pre-eminence  as  a  center  of  Methodist  interests,  and  the  existence  and 
facilities  of  the  Southern  Methodist  Church  in  this  city.  I  le  made  a  tour 
of  all  the  southern  cities,  and  engaged  the  attention  of  these  communities 
without  result.  He  placed  the  matter  before  the  great  publishing  houses, 
in  and  out  of  the  Methodist  Church,  at  the  East.  Tin;  desire  was  that  the 
publications  of  the  Union  should  go  through  an  already  established  pub- 
lishing house,  as  the  Union  was  totally  without  the  means  of  erecting  a 
place  for  printing  their  papers,  magazines  and  books.  The  eastern  pub- 
lishers declined  to  aid  him.  In  none  of  the  southern  cities,  except  Nash- 
ville, was  a  ghost  of  a  chance.  Nashville  was  decided  upon,  and  the  South- 
ern Methodist  Publishing  House  undertook  the  work  of  publishing  the 
Union's  literature.  The  secretary  removed  his  material  and  himself  to 
this  city  in  January,  1886.  At  this  time  he  was  publishing  the  Child's  Re- 
corder  and  the  Sunday-School  Review,  both  monthlies,  with  a  circulation  of 
ten  thousand  and  six  thousand  respectively — a  four  and  eight-page  paper. 
II"  was  also  revising  the  Church  Catechism,  issuing  a  collection  of  songs 
for  Sunday-schools,  a  Sunday-school  primer,  a  teacher's  class-book,  and  a 
record  for  Sunday-school  secretaries,  and  was  still  looking  after  the  other 
purposes  of  the  organization. 

The  total  receipts  for  the  fiscal  year  of  1885  were  $2,903.42;  for  1886, 
$7,615.98;  for  1887,  $12,659.24;  ending  next  month,  the  receipts  will  be 
$15,000. 

The  concern  is  now  publishing,  in  addition  to  the  above,  a  Teachers' 
Quarterly  Magazine,  a  Scholar's  Quarterly,  a  Juvenile  lesson  paper,  and  a  Gem 
lesson  paper.  The  combined  circulation  of  these  periodicals  is  about  one 
hundred  and  forty-five  thousand  every  three  months.  Two  of  these,  the 
Juvenile  and  the  Gem,  are  weekly.  There  are,  therefore,  two  quarterlies, 
two  weeklies,  and  one  monthly.  In  addition,  once  a  year  there  is  pub- 
lished a  Jubilee  Gem,  containing  an  exercise  for  "Children's  Day,"  which 
has  a  circulation  of  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  copies,  the 
postage  on  which  is  $210  in  a  single  mail.  The  Southern  Methodist  Pub- 
lishing House  has  continued  throughout  this  period,  from  the  beginning  of 
the  location  in  Nashville,  to  publish  all  these  periodicals,  and  has  received 
this  year  from  the  concern  a  fraction  over  $10,000  for  this  service. 

The  concern  has  never,  during  all  this  time,  asked  for  an 
hour's  credit,  and  is  to-day  owing  no  man  anything.  Finally, 
it  capped  the  climax  of  this  astonishing  performance  by  pur- 
chasing the  four-story  stone-front  brick  building,  No.  200  Public 


496 


History  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


Square  (north  side),  for  $9,000 — paying  $5,000  cash,  and  having 
two  years  to  pay  the  balance.  The  concern  will  take  the  build- 
ing and  give  it  an  attractive  exterior  and  interior  appearance. 
For  the  present  the  existing  relations  with  the  Southern  Meth- 
odist Publishing  House  will  be  maintained.  The  design  further 
involves  the  founding  of  a  regular  appointment  book  establish- 
ment. Relations  have  already  been  established  to  this  end  with 
Harper  Bros.,  Lippincotts,  Phillips  &  Hunt,  and  other  book 
publishers  of  the  country.  The  force  of  editors  and  clerks,  and 
all  tin1  attaches  of  the  institution  are  colored.  There  are,  besides, 
a  corps  of  contributors,  whose  literary  aid  goes  into  the  whole, 
and  other  editorial  work  is  paid  for  to  various  sources  as  wanted. 

The  publications  circulate  principally  in  the  United  States. 
In  addition  to  this  they  are  sent  into  Canada,  Nova  Scotia, 
the  Bermuda  Isles,  British  Guiana,  Hayti,  San  Domingo,  and 
the  west  coast  of  Africa,  In  this  country  they  reach  every 
slate  and  almost  every  territory.  They  go  as  far  northwest  as 
Montana,  as  far  west  as  California,  into  New  England,  and  ail 
over  the  South.  They  are  sent  directly  upon  order  to  colored 
Sunday-schools,  not  alone  in  the  Methodist  Church,  but  in  other 
denominations.  The  fact  that  there  is  no  other  colored  church 
that  has  this  character  of  enterprise  causes  the  onus  of  supplying 
a  Large  demand  for  Sunday-school  literature  to  devolve  upon  this 
concern.  We  have  said  that  no  enterprise  undertaken  by  our 
Connection  can  compare  with  this  successful  movement  but 
that  at  Wilberforce,  and  in  one  respect  it  transcends  Wilberforce. 
Both  are  educational;  both  care  for  the  moral  and  religious  as 
well  as  the  intellectual  culture  of  our  children  and  youth;  both 
look  beyond  the  present  to  the  future  generations  of  the  descend- 
ants of  Ham.  But  it  is  to  be  hoped  and  prayed  that  after  the 
successful  establishment  of  our  Sunday-School  Union  at  Nash- 
ville it  will  never  be  allowed  to  languish  and  suffer  as  the  edu- 
cational work  at  Wilberforce  has  done. 

If  no  rival  and  opposing  influences  are  brought  to  bear  upon  it,  if 
Sunday-school  unions  spring  not  up  in  every  episcopal  district,  it 
cannot  so  suffer.  Then,  as  to  its  future,  Ave  answer  in  the  spirit 
of  biblical  faith  and  hope:  All  the  promises  which  the  Lord  our 
God  made  to  the  patriarchs  and  the  prophets  were  conditional: 
they  were  based  upon  law — the  law  of  obedience,  of  faith  and  of 
love.  If  these  were  fulfilled  on  the  part  of  the  people  represented 
by  the  patriarchs  and  prophets,  God's  promises  would  be  fulfilled; 


The  Connectional  Sunday-School  Union. 


197 


if  this  threefold  law  were  ignored,  instead  of  blessings  the  dis- 
pleasure of  God  fell  upon  them.  Even  so  has  it  been  in  nil  the 
ages,  with  all  the  races,  for  the  Eternal  has  no  respect  for 
races,  as  such,  hut  he  has  the  highest  regard  for  the  character  of 
a  race.  Character  is  formed  only  by  obedience  to  law,  faith  in 
the  divine  Law-giver,  and  love  for  His  inimitable  character. 
Therefore,  if  the  leaders  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  will  heed  this 
law  and  the  principles  logically  Mowing  from  it,  the  Messed*  fut  ure 
of  our  Sunday-School  Union  and  every  other  department  of  our 
work  will  be  secured  and  shall  succeed.  Not  that  only,  but  more. 
Every  department  shall  en  la  rue  its  special  form  of  usefulness,  and 
perpetuate  that  specialty  ad  infinitum.  Now,  one  of  the  principles 
logically  resulting  from  this  threefold  divine  law  is  concentration 
and  unity.  If  all  the  pastors  and  superintendents  of  our  Sunday- 
schools  will  unite  as  one  man  and  use  no  other  literature  in 
their  Sunday-schools  hut  such  as  we  shall  always  furnish  them, 
the  Connectional  Sunday-School  Union  will  enlarge  its  useful- 
ness; and  if  they  will  concentrate  their  strength  and  power  upon 
this  department  it  will  be  perpetuated  as  long  as  the  Connection 
shall  exist.  These  reflections'and  these  principles,  and  this  three- 
fold divine  law  apply  to  all  and  every  department  of  our 
ecclesiastical  organization. 

And  now,  having  completed  the  work  as  the  historian  of  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  writer  thinks  it  cannot 
be  finished  with  any  better  words  than  the  command  which  the 
Lord  our  God  gave  to  Abraham :  "And  when  Abram  was  ninety 
years  old  and  nine,  the  Lord  appeared  to  Abram,  and  said 
unto  him,  I  am  the  Almighty  God;  walk  before  me,  and  be  thou 
perfect." 

We  cannot  do  better  than  to  echo  this  command,  and  say 
to  all  and  every  man,  woman  and  child  of  the  African  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  as  individual  elements  in  it,  and  to  the 
aggregated  whole  African  M.  E.  Church:  The  Almighty  God  is 
thy  God,  who  has  led  thee  on  from  one  degree  of  strength  to 
another  until  thou  hast  attained  a  little  productive  power.  Do 
not  be  proud  of  it,  for  pride  does  not  become  mortal  man.  Do 
not  boast  of  it,  for  boasting  is  the  breath  of  pride.  Remember 
that  God  looks  at  the  proud  afar  off.  Rather  be  modest,  be 
humble,  be  grateful,  be  obedient,  be  loving,  be  faithful,  and  He, 
the  Almighty  God  of  Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob,  will  raise  thee  to 
32 


498 


History  of  the.  A.  M.  E.  Church. 


a  higher  plane  of  strength,  of  power,  of  usefulness,  and  consequent 
greatness.  Listen  to  him,  as  Abraham  listened,  when  he  says 
unto  thee,  "African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  I  am  the 
Almighty  God,  walk  before  me,  and  be  thou  perfect."  Be  thou 
perfect  in  every  one  of  thy  members,  be  thou  perfect  in  every 
one  of  thy  departments,  "  and  I  will  make  thee  to  multiply  ex- 
ceedingly;" "and  I  will  make  thee  exceeding  fruitful;"  "and 
I  will  establish  my  covenant  between  me  and  thee  and  thy  seed 
after  thee  in  their  generations,  for  an  everlasting  covenant,  to  be 
a  God  unto  thee  and  thy  seed  after  thee."  Listen,  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  O,  listen,  and  when  thou  nearest,  obey  the  command  of 
the  Lord  God  Almighty  when  he  says,  "Walk  before  me,  and  be 
thou  perfect. "  "  I  have  formed  thee,  and  I  have  led  two  genera- 
tions  of  thine;  I  can,  I  will,  I  shall,  lead  a  thousand  generations 
further  and  higher  than  I  have  led  thee  and  thine.  Only  walk 
before  me  as  Abram  did,  and  with  me  as  Enoch  did."  "  Fear  not, 
I  am  thy  shield  and  thy  exceeding  great  reward."  "  Walk  before 
me,  and  be  thou  perfect." 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


A  Ni:\\   BRA,  167. 

Ability  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  to  pro- 
Vide  for  itself,  11. 

Abolition,  889. 

Adcussion,  Henry,  206. 

Adams,  B.  .1.,  294. 

African  Colonization.  288. 

Africanus,  Edward  C.,  308;  lines  on  li is 
death.  904. 

African  Missions— an  editorial.  150,  151. 

Allen,  Richard,  3,  4;  proposes  the  erec- 
tion of  a  church,  •">;  chosen  Bishop, 
14;  his  death,  68;  biographical  sketch 
of,  71-83. 

Allen,  Richard,  Jr..  hi. 

Allen,  Sarah,  consort  of  the  first  Bishop 
of  the  A.M.  E.  Church.  88;  her  death, 
86;  obituary  notice,  86-88. 

A.  M.  E.  Church  and  Foreign  Missions, 
293. 

An  irregular  petition  from  New  Haven, 

Conn.,  135. 
Animosity  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 

( !hurch,  52. 
Appeal  in  behalf  of  ministerial  support, 

IJJ.  123. 

Appendix  to  the  Minutes  of  the  Balti- 
more Annual  Conference  (1822),  24. 

A  revolutionary  motion,  319. 

Asbury,  Francis,  4,  6. 

Asburv,  Rev.  Mi-..  323;  his  address  on 
Education,  323.  324. 

Astwood,  II.  C.  C,  481. 

Avery,  Charles,  276;  his  address  to  the 
General  Conference  of  18.32,276. 

Baltimore  Churches,  230. 

Baltimore  Conference,  14,  hi.  1!),  20.  21,  27, 
39,  in.  li,  jii,  .V),  57,  64,  92,  94,  !>(i;  visits 
President  Jackson.  99;  103,  114,  121,  122, 
125,  134,  138,  155,  175,  182,  197,  207;  receives 
ii  petition  from  the  "First  Colored 
Wesleyan  Methodist  Independent  So- 
ciety of  Baltimore"  for  admission 
into  the  Connection,  208,  209;  results 
of  an  investigation,  209;  resolutions, 
210,  236,  24."),  287 ;  close  of  Bishop  Naz- 
rey's  labors  in  the  diocese,  306  ;  317; 
report  on  education,  406,  407 ;  condition 
of  in  1856,  415. 

Baltimore,  Richard,  37. 

Bassett.  Shadrack,  23,  281,  397. 

Beans.  Scipio,  .55 ;  a  missionary  to  Hayti, 
(i(i ;  his  death,  104  ;  biographical  sketch, 
104-100. 

Beginning  of  the  office  of  book  stew- 
ard, hi.  17. 

Bethel  Church,  Baltimore,  3;  possesses 
the  oldest  documents,  3;  laying  of  the 
corner-stone,  232,  234;  consecration, 
235. 

Bethel  Church,  Philadelphia,  3,  135,  401- 
464. 

Bias,  J.  J.  G.,  1.58,  281,  288,  318,  337,  344,  346, 
:;i7.  348,  351,  354,  3-56,  413. 

Birth  of  the  Canada  and  Indiana  Con- 
ferences, 128,  129. 

Bishops,  elected,  14;  important  points 
decided,  281,  282  ;  287,  288,  290,  201.  292; 
decision  on  what  would  be  a  justifi- 
able process  at  law,  319,  320;  at  Cana- 
dian. Conference,  321 ;  quadrennial  ad- 


dress, 328,  889,  830,  331,  332,  888;  limita- 
tion of  power,  852  856;  contemporane- 
ous, 112. 

BoggS,  .John,  221. 

Boler,  George,  214,  215. 

Book  Concern,  (il,  107,  111,  117,  189,  278, 
281,  283,  315;  management,  884;  .Meth- 
odist Episcopal,  125. 

British  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
890,  891,  892. 

Broadle,  George,  Secretary  of  Tenth 
Annual  Conference,  328;  on  slavery, 
842. 

Broadie.  Philip,  (il-03. 

Brown..!.  M.,  Nil;  bis  account  of  atrip 
from  New  Albany,  Ind.,  to  St.  Louis, 
Mo.,  242,  248,  211,  .'ill.  827;  statement 
concerning  Paul  Quinn  College, 448,449. 

Brown,  John,  lli(i. 

Brown,  Marcus,  317;  his  death,  317. 

Brown,  Morris,  22;  admitted  into  full 
connection,  26;  32;  elected  and  or- 
dained Bishop,  58;  preached  the  fu- 
neral sermon  of  Bishop  Allen,  68; 
stricken  with  paralysis,  17!);  his  death, 
236;  obituary,  261,  262;  his  sermon  to 
the  Baltimore  Conference,  263-265  ;  his 
kindness  to  Marcus  Brown,  317. 

Campbell,  Jakez  P.,  135;  admitted  on 
trial,  142;  admitted  into  full  connec- 
tion, 159;  chief  officer  of  publishing 
department,  333;  analysis  of  his  re- 
port, 333,  334. 

Canada  Conference,  128,  138,  144,  160,  178, 
185,  203,  257,  295,  321,  322  J  petit  ions  to  be 
set  apart  as  a  separate  body,  322;  last, 
annual  session  as  a  pant  of  the  A.  M. 
E.  Church,  361. 

Cain,  Richard  H.,  elected  to  the  bish- 
opric, 400. 

Cannon,  Noah  C.  W.,  102,  127,  160,  17!); 
his  death,  252;  biographical  sketch, 
253,  2.54.  255. 

Canadian  Churches,  257 ;  led  into  rebel- 
lion, 258;  difficulties  adjusted,  258. 

Character  of  the  Conference  of  1818,  18. 

Choir  of  Old  Bethel,  Philadelphia.  453; 
introduced  in  Baltimore,  456 ;  in  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  457. 

Christian  Recorder.  278;  M.  M.  Clark 
elected  editor,  278;  prospectus,  278; 
286;  when  issued,  297;  extracts,  297,  298, 
299;  contributors,  297,  305;  its  claims 
presented  to  the  New  England  Confer- 
ence by  Bishop  Nazrey,  306;  Editor 
Clark  resigns,  315;  suspends  publica- 
tion, 315;  318,  333,  334.  335. 

Church  Magazine,  147;  prospectus,  147- 
149. 

Clark,  M.  M.,  elected  general  book  agent, 
172;  197,  201;  important  discourse,  274, 
275,  270;  elected  editor  of  the  Chris- 
tian Recorder,  278;  his  report,  289; 
resigns  the  editorship,  315;  334,  340. 

Coke,  Thomas,  3. 

Coker,  Abner,  27  ;  his  death,  99. 

Coker,  Daniel,  12;  elected  Bishop,  14; 
declined  the  bishopric,  14;  his  trial, 
15:  expelled  from  the  Church,  15;  his 
reinstatement,  29;  88,  89;  publishes  a, 
pamphlet,  90;  393. 

(  499  ) 


General  Index. 

■K  1  


500 


Colored  members  of  the  If.  E.  Church 
send  in  their  resignations.  4,  9,  10. 

Colored  slaveholders,  340,  341. 

Condition  of  the  Church  in  the  South, 
342. 

Consecration  of  First  Bethel,  Philadel- 
phia, 5. 

Contemporaneous  patriarchs,  412. 
Convention,  educational,  307. 
Conyore,  David.  214. 
( 'ornish,  John,  95. 
( 'orr,  Charles  M.,  50. 

Corr,  Joseph  M.,  43;  his  death,  107;  110, 

2'«),  39a 
Cox,  Joseph,  In,  304. 
Cuba,  475. 

Daughtkiw  of  Conference,  50,  95,  130, 
100. 

Davis.  Fayette,  214. 

Debate,  in  reference  to  Western  terri- 
tory, 21. 

Decade,  detailed  review  of  the  Fourth, 
413-417. 

Delegates  to  the  General  Convention  in 
1MB,  13. 

Delegation  from  Elkton,  Md.,  attends 
the  General  Conference,  95. 

Dickerson,  William  Fisber.419. 

Difficulties  under  which  the  ministry 
labored,  53. 

Discipline,  on  divorces,  340;  348,  358;  re- 
vised for  the  &  M.  E.  Church,  384.  ' 

Discovery  of  a  eontemplaied  insurrec- 
tion in  Booth  Carolina,  4"). 

Discussion,  on  slavery,  337.  338,  339,  310, 
341,  342.  343,  344,  345;  on  dress,  by  the 
Tenth  General  Conference,  348-352 ;  on 
limitation  of  the  Bishop's  power,  352- 

a57. 

Ecclesiastical  Compact  formed  by 
the  General  Convention  in  1810,  13. 

Editorial  upon  the  work  of  Bishop 
Brown,  149. 

Education,  of  colored  people  strict  ly 
forbidden,  53;  141,  187;  report  of  com- 
mittee to  prepare  a  constitution  for  a 
parent  societv  to  promote  the  cause 
of,  188;  207.  239.  200,  201  ;  report  made  to 
the  Indiana  Conference,  314;  323;  a 
school  of  high  order  proposed,  324, 
320;  resolutions  for  the  promotion  of, 
304,  395;  delegation  in  behalf  of.  398, 
397;  M.  ft.  Church  on  Wilberforce 
University  and  education,  399,  400^  401 ; 
the  attitude  of  the  Baltimore,  Ohio, 
Missouri  and  Indiana  Conferences, 
402-407;  Christian.  421. 

Embury.  Philip,  4. 

Ente,  Samuel,  05.  95. 

Episcopal  districts,  287. 

Events  in  1856,  402. 

Examination  of  the  affairs  of  the  New 

England  Conference,  308. 
Expansion  of  the  Western  field,  114. 
Extension  of  the  Connection,  56,  57. 
Extinction  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  in 

.South  Carolina,  45. 
Extract  of  the  Discipline  of  1817,  43. 

Fasting  and  Pkayek  for  the  abolition 

of  slaverv,  237,  238. 
Fine  Arts  in  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  459, 

400,  401. 

"First  Colored  Methodist  Protestant 
Church,"  232. 

Forms  for  laying  corner-stones  and  ded- 
icating churches  established,  223. 


French,  Mansfield,  speech  to  Ohio  Con- 
ference on  planting  Wilberforce  Uni- 
versity, 409,  410. 

G ADDIS,  M.  P.,  Jr.,  First  Principal  of 
Wilberforce  University,  421. 

Gardner,  P.,  makes  a  proposition  re- 
garding the  Christian  Recorder,  318. 

General  Book  Agent,  first  annual  re- 
port, 172;  189,  190;  279;  resigned,  318. 

General  Book  Steward,  143,  144,  159,  160, 
172;  report,  190,  191,  192,  193;  report,  239, 
240,  211,  242;  several  points,  241,  242; 
27H;  resigned,  318;  report,  319;  333. 

General  Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  40,  58,  94,  111,  131,  1H7,  172,  173, 
217,  2HK-279;  first  division  of  Church 
work  into  episcopal  districts,  287  ;  293, 
328 ;  on  slavery,  335-348 ;  on  divorce's,  346- 
348;  on  dress,  318-352;  on  limitation  of 
Bishops'  power,  352-350;  rejects  the 
proposition  of  the  Cincinnati  Confer- 
ence of  the  M.  E.  Church  to  establish 
a  school  for  colored  youths,  3-57;  vari- 
ous amendments  made  to  the  Disci- 
pline, 358;  revises  hymn-book,  358, 
359;  orders  episcopal  seal,  35!). 

General  Conference  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  4. 

General  Convention,  to  form  an  ecclesi- 
astical compact,  7,  13  14, 10;  to  consider 
the  interests  of  education,  187,  lxs;  to 
remodel  the  Church  in  Canada,  362-389. 

Green,  A.  II.,  324,  341,  314. 

Greytown,  384,  885. 

Hackktt.  Ciiaki.es,  39. 

Hall,  Don  Carlos,  17,  19;  his  death,  39;  92. 

Hall,  James  D.  S.,  280,  294 ;  missionary 
to  the  freedmen,  407,  408. 

Harden,  Henry,  17,  35;  sent  to  New- 
York,  35;  36. 

Harper,  Frances  K.  W.,  poems  in  Chris- 
tian Recorder,  302,  398. 

Haynes,  Lemuel,  first  colored  minister 
in  New  England,  409. 

Hayti,  475;  inhabitants  of,  475;  intro- 
duction of  slavery,  475;  slavery 
abolished,  470;  attempt  to  restore  slav- 
ery defeated  by  Toussaint  L'  Ouver- 
ture.  470;  condition  of  the  inhabitants 
of  Hayti,  477;  African  MetluKlist 
Episcopal  Church  and  the  Haytians, 
477;  organization  of  the  "  Union  Meth- 
odist Church,"  478. 

Havtian  Methodist  Church,  140,  143. 

Heimsley,  Alexander,  359,  389. 

Hogarth,  George. 57,  95,  112;  article  in  the 
magazine  of  1*45, 193, 194  ;  his  death,  252. 

Home  Missions,  54. 

Hymn-books,  315. 

Indiana  Conference,  130,  131,  137,  US, 
101,  179,  180,  184,  206,  2-59,  284,  295,  296;  fif- 
teenth annual  session,  313;  325,  326,  327; 
report  on  education,  405,  406;  its  con- 
dition in  1856,  417. 

Institutions  of  learning,  447,  448.  ». 

Itinerants,  412,  413. 

Johnson,  Robert  M.,  266;  lines  to  the 
Memory  of  Bishop  Morris  Brown,  26/ ; 

338. 

Jones,  Absalom,  ordained  by  Bishop 
White,  4. 

Jones,  William  H.,  278;  resigns  position 
as  book  agent,  318 ;  334 

Laborers,  first  generation  of,  411,  412, 
413 ;  second,  419,  420. 


Generjd  Index. 


501 


Lambert,  William,  84;  a  missionary,  86"; 
his  labors  In  New  York, 85. 

Lawrence,  Elizabeth,  mother  of  Thom- 
as* 800;  her  death,  811. 

Lawrence,  Thomas,  sketch  of  his  life, 
800-818. 

Laws  prohibiting  white  or  free  colored 

people  teaching  slaves,  168. 

Lee,  Benjamin  F.,  president  of  Wilber- 
force  University,  146;  editor  of  Chris- 
tian Recorder.  148. 

Legg,  Thomas,  biographical  sketch,  320, 

m. 

Leigh,  C.  C,  467. 

Letter  of  commendation  to  the  Balti- 
moreans  concerning  Rev.  L  Miller,  64; 
from  the  society  in  llavti  asking  rec- 
ognition as  a  branch  of  the  African 
Methodist  Church,  05;  to  the  World's 
Convention  of  the  Christian  Church, 
201-208. 

Lewis,  A.  I).,  168,  109. 

Licensing  women  to  preach,  801. 

List  Of  ministers  in  t  he  A.  M.  E.  Church 
six  years  after  its  organization,  38,  30. 

Literary  qualifications,  419,  420. 

Literature,  183,  297-806. 

Louisiana,  330. 

Lynch,  .lames.  !0,  ;  a  missionary  to  the 
freedman,  487 ;  469. 

Malthy.  Esther,  teacher  at  Wilber- 
force  University,  420. 

Ma  t  bias,  Fortune,  108. 

Membership,  growth  in,  465. 

Membership  of  the  Philadelphia  Dis- 
trict in  1824,  44. 

Methodism  —  .English,  American  and 
A  frican,  394. 

Miller,  Isaac,  07. 

Miller,  Jeremiah,  128. 
"^^^Missions,  Home,  287;  relation  of  the 
A.  M.  E.  Church  to  Foreign,  293,  294: 
Liberia  in  Africa,  318;  resolutions  ana 
comments  on,  407,  408;  in  the  South, 
470. 

Missionary  Society,  296,  314 ;  in  Western 
Africa,  367. 

Missouri  Conference,  organized,  327 ;  re- 
port on  education,  404,  405;  adopts  a 
course  of  study  for  its  ministers,  408 ; 
review  of,  408;  condition  in  1856,  417. 

Mitchell,  John  G.,  professor  at  Wilber- 
force  University,  429. 

Mitchell,  Samuel  T.,  President  of  Wil- 
berforce  University,  446. 

Morgan,  John,  313. 

Morgan,  John,  338. 

Nazrey,  Wil.t,is,  127  ?  134;  ordained  an 
elder,  158;  elected  Bishop,  273;  his  first 
annual  address,  287;  introduces  a 
change  in  disciplinary  transactions, 
292,  293;  his  address  to  the  New 
York  Conference.  293;  close  of  his 
labors  in  the  Baltimore  Conference, 
306;  presents  the  claims  of  the  Chris- 
tian Recorder  to  the  New  England 
Conference,  306, 307 ;  his  annual  address 
to  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  319; 
321;  elected  Bishop  of  the  British 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  383;  field 
of  labor  from  1856  to  1860,  407. 

New  churches  erected,  153. 

New  England  Conference,  organization, 
284  ;  286,  287,  294,  295,  306,  321;  condi- 
tion of  in  1856,  416. 

Numerical  strength  of  the  clergy,  154 ;  of 
members,  154. 


0 

New  York  Conference,  H2,  :!7,  70,  96,  97, 
102,  107,  111,  117,  119,  121,  125,  186,  112,  178, 
181,  199,  212,  266,  282,283,292,320;  condi- 
I  ion  of  in  1856.  116. 

New  York  territory  enlarged,  159. 

Nichols,  William,  170. 

Notice  of  the  deal  hot  Kt.  Rev.  Richard 
Allen,  60. 

OHIO  formed  info  a  Conference  District, 
08. 

Ohio  Conference^  fflfedmportant  resolu- 
tions passed,  98;  100,  111,  I  IS,  180,  145, 
'162,  ISO,  203,  204,  205,  206,  213,  237  ;  288,  296, 
808,822;  on  education,  894 ;  899;  reports 
on  education,  102,  408,  404;  visited  by 
Rev.  Mansfield  French,  who  speaks 
on  the  planting  of  Wllberforce  Uni- 
versity, 409,  410;  its  condition  in  1856, 
416. 

Organization  of  the  Methodist  Church 
in  America,  4;  of  the  African  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  13-18;  of  the 
British  Methodist  Episcopal  Chinch, 
361-892;  organization  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  in  Tennessee,  471,  472. 

Our  Exact  Fathers,  17. 

Pastoral  Letter,  228,  229. 

Raul  Quinn  College,  448,  149,  450,  451. 

Payne.  Daniel  A., admitted  on  trial,  189; 
admitted  into  full  connection,  158;  168; 
issay  on  the  education  of  the  min- 
istry, 195,  196;  210;  appointed  histori- 
ographer of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church,  221 ; 
sermon  before  t  he  General  Conference 
of  1852,  268-271 ;  elected  Bishop,  274  ;  his 
reply  to  Rev.  Charles  Avery,  276,  277; 
2S2;  address  at  the  first  session  of  the 
New  England  Conference,  28.5,  280 ; 
poem  in  the  first  issue  of  the  Chris- 
tian Recorder,  297,  298,  29ft;  306,  321,  324, 
327,  382,  400;  field  of  labor  from  1856  to 
1860,  407;  historical  sketch  of  Wilher- 
force  University,  423-430;  President  of 
Wilberforce,  431;  Sacred  Ode,  454,  455; 
offers  prizes  for  fine  arts,  460,  461. 

Peck,  John,  325,  339. 

Pennington,  J.  W.  C,  299;  on  "The  Des- 
tiny of  the  Colored  Race  in  the  United 
States,"  in  the  Christian  Recorder, 
299,  300. 

Petition  from  the  First  Colored  Meth- 
odist Independent  Society  of  •Balti- 
more, 208;  of  the  society  of  Methodists 
in  New  Orleans,  222;  of  Union  Church, 
Philadelphia,  227;  of  First  Colored 
Methodist  Church  of  Sacramento, 
Cal.,  260;  of  First  Congregational 
Church  of  Schenectady,  N.  Y.,  282,  283. 

Philadelphia  Conference,  26,  31,  32,  33,  43, 
50,  56,  .58,  60,  66,  94,  96, 100,  106,  107,  119,  122, 
133,  139,  157,  177,  183,  212,  221,  230,  237,  280, 
288,  292,  315;  resolutions,  395,  396;  con- 
dition in  1856,  415. 

Plans  to  support  the  book  concern,  122. 

Praise  to  the  early  workers,  54. 

Preliminary  causes  which  led  to  the 
organization  of  the  African  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  3-8. 

President  Jackson  and  the  Baltimore 
Conference,  99. 

Proctor,  Walter,  ,33,  86,  94,  177.  • 

Proof  of  the  ability  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church  to  provide  for  itself,  11. 

Proposed  union  with  the  Zion  Wes- 
leyan  Methodists,  197. 

Questions  before  the  General  Confer- 


• 


502 


General  Index. 


ence,  335;  slavery,  335-345;  divorce, 
346-348;  dress,  348-352  ;  limitation  of 
Bishop's  power,  352-356. 
Quinn,  William  Paul,  7,  96,  98,  131,  137, 
14() ;  missionary  report,  170;  elected 
and  ordained  Bishop,  171,  172;  meets 
with  an  accident,  179;  199;  his  address 
to  the  New  York  Conference,  2-56,  2.57; 
address  to  the  General  Conference  of 
1852,  271,  272,  273  ;  281,  287,  295,  308,  322; 
field  of  labor  from  18-56  to  1860,  407. 

R  \  LSTON,  R.,  4. 

Reason,  Charles,  291. 

Recapitulation  of  members,  12-5. 

Records  of  the  origin  of  the  Philadel- 
phia Church,  3. 

Remarkable  outpouring  of  the  spirit, 
163-166. 

Report,  of  Book  Steward,  96,  107,  1.54; 
"  Committee  of  Five,"  115,  116;  Com- 
mittee on  Education,  169,326;  Commit- 
tee on  Slavery  to  the  New  England 
Conference,  307,  308;  314,  315.  320; 
Genera]  Book  Steward,  333;  335-337, 
363,  4O2-407;  of  Union  Seminary  to  the 
Ohio  Conference,  -410,  411. 

Resolutions,  against  Free  Masonry,  113; 
to  institute  a  course  of  study  for  the 
ministry,  168;  on  education,  182,  183; 
indicating  the  feelings  and  opinions 
Of  the  Philadelphia  Conference  rela- 
tive to  the  American  Colonization 
Society,  2-50;  relative  to  the  Fugitive 
Slave  Law  of  the  American  Congress, 
251:  relative  to  the  decease  of  Rev. 
George  Hogarth,  253;  of  the  Canadian 
Churches  relative;  to  slavery,  259 ;  361, 
3f>5;  relative  to  Bishop  Payne  and  the 
history  of  the  Church,  359;  regarding 
the  setting  apart  of  the  Canadian 
Conference  as  a  separate  body.  3i>7 ;  to 
send  missionaries  to  South  Carolina, 
107. 

Result    of   the    separation    from  the 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  9-12. 
Revels,  W.  EL,  296,  338,  312,  343. 
Revivals,  232. 
Ricks,  Arnold.  37. 

Rise  of  African  Methodism  in  the  city 

of  New  York,  34-37. 
Roberts,  Jacob,  07. 
Robinson.  Richard,  36,  306,  339,  313. 
Rush,  Benjamin,  4. 

San  Domingo,  319. 

Schools,  183;  report  of  committee,  185; 
report  of  committee  to  draft  a  consti- 
tution, 186,  1H7. 

Separation  from  the  M.  E.  Church  bene- 
ficial to  the  colored  man.  0. 

Sketch,  of  the  life  of  Rev.  Thomas  Law- 
rence, 309-313;  of  the  life  of  Thomas 
Legg,  320,  321 ;  of  Wilberforce  Univer- 
sity, 42:w:«. 

Slavery,  45,  335,  336,  337. 

Slaveholders,  fear  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  45;  give  money  for  a  church, 
344;  in  Ohio,  341. 

Smith.  C.  S.,  founder  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Sunday-School  Union,  4-58,  459,  493,  494. 

Smith,  David,  3. 

Smith,  Stephen,  makes  a  proposition  to 
raise  means  for  the  support  of  the 
Christian  Recorder,  318,  319.  * 

South  Carolina  Conference,  -469,  470. 

Statistics— M.  E.  Church,  10;  of  mem- 
bership of  the  A.  M-  E.  Church,  33, 


South  Hanover  College  makes  provis- 
ion for  free  education.  284. 

Strawbridge,  Robert,  4. 

Struggle  for  supremacy  between  trustees 
and  pastors,  223-227,  230-232. 

Stuart,  Benjamin,  321,  322. 

Study,  course  of.  395. 

Supreme  Court,  opinion,  225. 

Testimony  of  Daniel  Coker's  worth, 
90,  91. 

The  historian's  task,  2;  stronghold  of 
African  Methodism,  26,  27;  accursed 
system  of  slavery,  15:  chartered  fund 
for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  and  relief 
of  traveling  preachers,  56 ;  black  code. 
95;  Church  awakened,  U7;  labor  field 
in  New  York  District  enlarged,  124; 
church  at  Providence,  R,  I.,  143; 
church  magazine,  141,  143,  144,  147-140, 
1-50-1.53;  Zion  Wesleyan,  151;  Disci- 
pline, 168,  169,  170,  2.0,  278. 

Three  founders  elected  deacons,  26. 

Three  points  of  history,  1. 

Trial  of  Daniel  Coker,  15. 

Trouble  at  Rah  way,  X.  J.,  125,  111. 

Tudas,  Jonathan,  7. 

Union  Theological  Association  of 

Philadelphia,  153. 
Union  Manual   Labor  Seminary,  205, 

2i5,  216. 

Union  Seminary,  283,  284,  296,  308,  323, 
325,  399. 

Ward.  T.  M.  D.,  286;  poem  on  the  death 
of  Edward  C.  African  us,  .304,  305 

Ware,  J.  I--.  W..  1  to. 

Warren,  John  A.,  338. 

Waters,  Edward,  ordained  deacon,  16; 
elder,  19;  70;  chosen  Bishop  Brown's 
assistant,  91;  elected  and  ordained 
Bishop,  112;  his  first  and  la^t  tour  of 
the  Conferences,  113;  requests  to  be 
located,  113;  resigns  bis  episcopal 
authority,  113;  meets  with  an  accident, 
.    113;  his  death,  113. 

Way  man,  Alexander,  158;  funeral  ser- 
mon of   Bishop  Brown,  265,  266;  340. 

Weaver,  Elisha,  341,  34!). 

Weir,  George,  135,  136. 

West  India  Islands,  a  str/mger  sent  as  a 
missionary,  282. 

White.  Bishop,  ordains  Absalom  Jones, 

Wilberforce  University,  sold  to  the  A. 
M.  E.  Church,  422;  under  auspices  of 
the  M.  E.  Church,  123;  brief  history 
by  Rev.  John  E.  Wright,  123;  com- 
mittee's report,  423,  424  ;  resolutions  re- 
lating to,  425;  immediate  results,  42* ; 
under  the  auspices  of  the  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  428;  new  charter,  429;  de- 
stroyed by  fire,  429;  opening  of  theo- 
logical and  classical  departments,  430, 
431;  faculty,  431,  432;  methods  of 
work,  432,  433;  buildings  and  grounds, 
433,  434;  aid  from  various  sources,  435: 
college  societies,  435;  endowment 
fund,  436;  facilities,  source  of  income 
and  present  condition,  436;  summary 
of  results  from  1863  to  1876,  437,  438; 
literary  societies  and  reading-room. 
443-445 ;  change  among  instructors  and 
the  result,  446,  447. 

3ion  Chapel,  209,  210, 


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